Mohd Juwaidi Mazuki’s comeback worth his first international medal

Mohd Juwaidi Mazuki had a strong season opening in Türkiye, where he grabbed his maiden international podium in the first stage of the Hyundai Archery World Cup 2023.

The compounder from Malaysia defeated Mike Schloesser in the bronze medal match, having comeback out of thin air.

And what made it even more remarkable is that the Dutchman – known as Mister Perfect – rarely walks away without a medal.

The event in Antalya and the second stage in Shanghai were his first two international events since 2019, as he did not immediately return to competition after the COVID-19 outbreak.

“First, it was obviously the pandemic. And our federation wasn’t very active,” he explained, following his lifetime result in Antalya. “Now it’s active again and sends archers to international events.”

Mazuki had to adapt to the new pandemic and post-pandemic reality. He used to spend his time mainly shooting and training. The lack of international events changed everything.

“Actually, it wasn’t so difficult,“ he said. “I stopped being a full-time athlete. I was running a business and doing some other jobs to survive.

Having a possible comeback on his mind, the 33-year-old Malaysian archer once again shifted his focus to sport.

Now back to full-time archery in Malaysia since 2023, he just shoots his bow. And with astonishing results.

Mazuki collected his premiere World Cup medal in his first circuit appearance after a four-year drought.

“Hopefully, I will keep going it like that,” he said. “I put more effort during training sessions and probably showed that in Antalya.”

Mazuki is close to his career-best in the Sanlida World Ranking as well. Ranked 31st in April 2017, he had dropped out of the top 100 but will be back among the world’s 50 best archers after Antalya.