"I thought I could be 21.40 tonight so to see 21.29, I'm pretty fired up," he said. "I'm one of the old guys on the team now, which is really weird," he said. Ledecky bested her gold medal effort in Tokyo by more than three seconds to win the 800 metres free the opening night of the competition. "I'm really happy with that time, it's a great time for me. I'm really happy to end on a good note," said Smith, who finished second in the 200m fly and 50m back earlier in the meet.

PETALING JAYA: Malaysians and International travellers coming into the country need not undergo Covid-19 tests before leaving their port of embarkation and after arrival here from Sunday (May 1). These rules apply to all fully-vaccinated travellers aged 18 and above, and for those 17 and below irrespective of vaccination status. ALSO READ: Covid-19 test only required for partially or unvaxxed travellers, says KhairyHowever, travellers aged 18 and above who were not fully vaccinated or not vaccinated at all must undergo Covid-19 infection tests (RT-PCR or RTK-Ag Professional) two days before departure to Malaysia. "If the tests are negative the travellers will still have to undergo compulsory quarantine for five days in the place of accommodation," he said. All travellers must display their Traveller's Card at international entry points, he added.

KOTA BHARU: The public is reminded to not be complacent about the threat of Covid-19 although the government has eased preventive and restriction controls beginning on Sunday (May 1). Communications and Multimedia Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa (pic) said his ministry would continue to remind the public about standard operating procedures (SOP) through mainstream media platforms like television and radio. Annuar, who was one of the Covid-19 Quartet Ministers, said his ministry would continue to provide support to the transition to the endemic phase implemented since April 1, which was aimed at restoring the country’s economy. "The transition to the endemic phase has witnessed restrictions being eased for various sectors, enabling Malaysians to return to a nearly normal lifestyle after over two years of combating Covid-19. "This step is important as it will boost the national economy, especially affected sectors after the country’s borders were closed as part of the government’s fight against Covid-19," he added.

KUALA LUMPUR (May 1): Axiata Group Bhd is set to launch the Axiata Net-Zero Carbon Roadmap this year to achieve net-zero emissions no later than 2050, with a near-term 2030 target to reduce operational carbon emissions by 45%. Izzaddin said enhancing the group's net-zero carbon agenda in 2022 will involve efforts that leverage climate governance and targets established in 2021. Among the group's focus under Axiata 5.0 Vision for 2022 will be the completion of the merger between Celcom Axiata Bhd and Digi.com Bhd upon receiving the relevant approvals and integration of the two businesses. The group will also focus on Boost and Axiata Digital Advertising Sdn Bhd's regional expansion in ramping up towards realising their unicorn status ambitions. "In 2022, Axiata will scale up to build a regional enterprise solutions provider by leveraging the internal capabilities of its digital telcos, digital businesses, and Axiata digital labs assets," he said.

PETALING JAYA: Khairy Jamaluddin has urged Malaysians to comply if business premises request to view their risk status on MySejahtera as there will no longer be compulsory check-ins from Sunday (May 1). Malls won't check your risk status at entrances. But businesses like restaurants (high-risk, since unmasked) may (recommended) ask to see patrons' risk status. Pls cooperate," the Health Minister said in a Twitter post on Saturday (April 30). Khairy also urged those who test positive for Covid-19 to be responsible, stay at home and obey the Home Surveillance Order (HSO).

KUALA LUMPUR (April 30): Capital A Bhd, formerly AirAsia Group Bhd, said the budget airline is monitoring the development of zero-emission aircraft as part of the its planned fleet transformation and as it explores innovative avenues to prepare for the future of travel. "As with everything we do, this will be another exciting first in the region — making eco-friendly ultra short-haul air travel affordable and inclusive. We are currently undertaking a thorough study, and look forward to announcing more developments in our next annual report,” it added. We believe all the signs point towards regional air travel returning to some measure of normalcy within the year and that international air travel will recover rapidly throughout 2022 and the years ahead. The vaccinated travel lane between Malaysia and Singapore resumed on Jan 24.

KUALA LUMPUR (April 30): A total of 831,523 children aged between five and 11 years in Malaysia, or 23.4% of the group, had completed their vaccination under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme for Children (PICKids) as of Friday (April 29). Based on the COVIDNOW website, a total of 1,528,733 children within the same age group, or 43% of them, had received at least one dose of the vaccine. On Friday itself, a total of 38,581 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine were dispensed, with 10,692 as first doses, 24,862 second jabs and 3,027 booster shots, bringing total doses administered under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) as of Friday to 70,274,130. Follow our Covid-19 vaccination tracker to see where we are in the race to herd immunity. Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Health’s GitHub portal, six deaths due to Covid-19 were reported on Friday, with three of the cases recorded in Selangor and one fatality each in Perak, Sabah and Terengganu.

M&C Saatchi Kuala Lumpur is proud to present Celcom Axiata Berhad’s thematic Hari Raya film for 2022. As one of the first annual Hari Raya short films anticipated by Malaysians to be released, it is aptly titled “Syukur 1 Syawal”. Set in Johor, the film tells the story of 11-year-old Danish who is anxious to balik kampung and celebrate Hari Raya with his relatives. But through a heart wrenching turn of events, he will instead gain something even more valuable – true appreciation for his family, other people, and Aidilfitri. With this short film, M&C Saatchi has crafted a memorable tale that is in line with Celcom’s goal of helping Malaysians enjoy an impactful Hari Raya celebration.

PETALING JAYA: Make sure your Touch ‘n Go cards are valid for use before travelling home for the holidays, says PLUS Malaysia Bhd (PLUS). Its chief operating officer Datuk Zakaria Ahmad Zabidi said dormant or expired cards used at toll plazas would be declined by the system and customers might not be able to pass through. “Due to the various Covid-19 travel restrictions since 2020, Touch ’n Go cards may be inactive as no toll transactions were made for 12 consecutive months. Therefore, we advise customers with dormant or expired Touch ‘n Go cards to obtain a replacement at authorised Touch ‘n Go retailers before travelling,” he said in a statement yesterday. He added that MyKads embedded with Touch ‘n Go chips could also be topped up at highways.

BUTTERWORTH: An owner of a communication equipment shop was fined RM18,000 by separate Sessions Courts here Friday (April 29) after she pleaded guilty to charges of possessing and selling equipment that were not certified by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC). In the court before Judge Norhayati Mohamad Yunus, Wang Wan Ling (pic), 52, was fined RM8,000, in default two months jail on the charge of possessing uncertified communication equipment. She was charged with possession of nine Pakite PAT225 brand wireless AV senders and seven Pakite PAT 535 brand wireless AV senders that were not certified by MCMC as required under Regulation 16 (1) (b) of the Communications and Multimedia (Technical Standards) Regulations 2000. 2, Jalan Perai Jaya 2, Bandar Perai Jaya, Perai at 3.09pm on Sept 10 last year. In the court before Judge Noor Aini Yusof, the woman was fined RM10,000, in default two months jail, for selling an uncertified communication equipment, namely a Pakite RCA Wireless AV sender model PAT535.

KUALA LUMPUR (April 29): Digital bank bidders rose on Friday morning (April 29) as Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is set to announce the winners on the same day. Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd added two sen or 1.75% to RM1.16, while Revenue Group Bhd grew six sen or 4.69% to RM1.34. “We also expect the entry of these digital banks to accelerate the digitalisation of our incumbent banks. Later in March, however, Nor Shamsiah said that the central bank will only announce in the near future its decision on the digital bank licences upon completion of the legal process. Read also:BNM to announce digital bank licence winners on Friday, say sources

KUALA LUMPUR (April 29): Bursa Malaysia’s Energy Index rose more than 3% on the last trading day of April, led mainly by a rally among oil and gas (O&G) refiners, in particular Hengyuan Refining Co Bhd and Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Bhd, in line with the spike in crack spreads. Hengyuan and Petron Malaysia, on the other hand, had rallied 57 sen (10.94%) and 25 sen (4.76%) to settle at RM5.78 and RM5.50, respectively. Both refiners also saw heightened trading interest in Friday's morning trading session, as Hengyuan and Petron Malaysia saw 9.33 million shares and 1.37 million shares changed hands. Another O&G producer Hibiscus Petroleum Bhd also benefited from the refiners’ rally as it was six sen or 4.92% higher at RM1.28. Strong demand for transportation fuels amid a supply shortfall would drive refining margins even as a recent surge in crude prices bolsters feedstock costs, Moody’s added.

SHAH ALAM: Police are looking for a man who was captured on CCTV masturbating while peeping into a house kitchen at Section 23 here. The video showed the man creeping around a back alley of the housing area. He can then be seen crouching and pacing forward and backwards while peeping through the kitchen window of one of the houses while masturbating. Shah Alam OCPD Asst Comm Mohd Iqbal Ibrahim said a one-minute-19-second video of the incident was circulated on social media by Twitter handle @Bangbunn. He said the case was classified as a public act of gross indecency under Section 377D of the Penal Code.

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit rebounded to open slightly higher against the US dollar today after two consecutive days of losses as the cheaper ringgit attracted investors, said an analyst. At 9.16 am, the local note stood at 4.3550/3595 versus the greenback from Thursday’s close of 4.3630/3650. However, another dealer said the ringgit’s gains were limited as investors remain concerned over the Bank of Japan's decision on its monetary policy. Meanwhile, the ringgit was traded higher against a basket of major currencies. The local note strengthened versus the Japanese yen to 3.3369/3406 from Thursday’s close of 3.3412/3430, and rose against the euro to 4.5828/5875 from 4.5894/5915 previously.

KUALA LUMPUR (April 28): Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) will be unveiling the successful applicants for its digital bank licences on Friday (April 29), according to sources. BNM was previously slated to make the announcement on March 30, but instead said it would be announcing the winners “upon completion of the legal process”. BNM previously said it could select up to five successful applicants once it concludes its assessment, and hinted that it was looking at “tech-heavy and tech-savvy” players to hold the digital bank licence. Also tipped as a front runner was YTL Corp Bhd, which has reportedly submitted a bid with Singapore’s Sea Group. Read also:BNM awards digital banking licences to Boost-RHB, GXS Bank-Kuok Brothers, YTL-SEA, AEON-MoneyLion, KAF ConsortiumRHB Bank, Axiata, YTL Corp, AEON Credit climb after winning digital bank licences