Kuala lumpur: Through several Asian Games campaigns, Malaysia's diving medal hopes have largely rested on household names such as Ooi Tze Liang, Nur Dhabitah Sabri, Wendy Ng Yan Yee, and diving queen Datuk Pandelela Rinong. With Nur Dhabitah sidelined by health reasons and both Tze Liang and Wendy now retired, the responsibility of keeping Malaysia on the Asian Games podium has now fallen to the likes of Elvis Priestley Clement and Enrique Harold Maccartney at the 2026 edition to be held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan from Sept 19-Oct 4. According to BERNAMA News Agency, national diving technical director Yeoh Ken Nee said that Malaysia will prioritize the synchronised events in its medal hunt, with the country's best chance of winning a medal at the upcoming Asiad lying with Elvis and Enrique. Their impressive performance during last year's World Aquatics Championships in Singapore, where they finished seventh in the men's synchronised 10m platform final, demonstrated their potential to challenge Asia's elite in Ja pan. Ken Nee noted that based on their final rankings at the World Aquatics Championships, Elvis and Enrique would have secured a silver or bronze medal position among the Asian participants alone, indicating a strong possibility of bringing home a medal. However, he cautioned that the pair will face stiff competition from traditional heavyweights like China, South Korea, and Japan. The six-time Asian Games medallist expressed encouragement by the steady progress shown by Elvis and Enrique, highlighting that consistency will be crucial if they are to achieve a podium finish at the Asian Games. The duo has been working on new dives to increase their degree of difficulty, though the coaching team will decide on their inclusion in competitions based on the situation during the event. Meanwhile, Ken Nee commented on Pandelela's challenging path at the Asian Games amid a rapidly improving field of competitors in the women's 10m platform. Despite being a key figure in the squad, Pandelela faces tough competition from young divers from countries like China, South Korea, and Japan, who performed well at last year's World Aquatics Championships. Pandelela, who had to withdraw from the women's 10m platform preliminary competition at last year's world meet due to a shoulder injury, is also expected to compete in the women's synchronised 10m platform with former SEA Games gold medallist Lee Yiat Qing. The men's squad for the upcoming Asian Games also includes Olympian Bertrand Rhodict Lises, Muhammad Syafiq Puteh, Nurqayyum Nazmi Mohamad Nazim, and Yong Rui Jie, while the women's team features Nur Eilisha Rania Muhammad Abrar Raj and Ong Ker Ying.