Welcome home, heroes: (from left) Powerlifter Bonnie Bunyau Gustin, long jumper Abdul Latif Romly, shuttler Cheah Liek Hou, sprinter Eddy Bernard and shot putter Ziyad Zolkefli. — GLENN GUAN/The Star
SEPANG: Paralympic badminton ace Cheah Liek Hou has expressed his gratitude to the National Sports Council (NSC) for the support and does not see defending his Paralympic gold medal in the men’s singles SU5 as the end of his illustrious career.
At 36 years of age, Liek Hou remains hungry for success and is determined to continue bringing glory to Malaysia on the international stage.
“For me, the NSC were among those who provided the most assistance, as was the National Sports Institute, because they fulfilled all our requests.
“We were also granted permission to use the futsal court at NSC for training for one-and-a-half months,” he said when met upon his arrival from Paris at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in Sepang on Tuesday.
“During that time, I could focus entirely on my training while staying at Casa 2. If there were any issues, I would go straight to physiotherapy for recovery, which greatly aided my preparation,” said Liek Hou, who also hoped the spat between the NSC and Malaysian Paralympic Council (MPC) will end amicably.
MPC president Datuk Seri Megat Shahriman Zaharudin had earlier said that the NSC should take the blame as well following the national contingent’s failure to meet the target of four gold medals at the Paris Paralympics.
Liek Hou, an eight-time world champion, called for unity among all parties to further elevate the standard of sports in the country as internal conflicts would not benefit anyone.
“For me, we should not allow any issues to arise because as athletes, we want to focus entirely on our achievements and the targets set.
“If we can achieve positive results, why not maintain the existing programmes or sit down together to discuss better programmes?”
On his future, Liek Hou said he aimed to focus first on competing in the 2026 Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
“There are still four years before Los Angeles 2028, and I don’t know what will happen to me by then. What’s important is that I focus year by year, maybe on the 2026 Asian Para Games in Japan first.
“If my condition is still strong, I want to continue to set more records and create history in para badminton.”
The 30-strong Malaysian contingent returned home from Paris Paralympics to a hero’s welcome led by Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh.
Malaysia finished 42nd overall at the Paris Paralympics, winning two gold, two silver, and one bronze medal. The contingent’s other gold was delivered by powerlifter Bonnie Bunyau Gustin in the men’s 72kg category.
Abdul Latif Romly (men’s T20 long jump) and Ziyad Zolkefli (F20 shot putt) delivered the silver medals while the lone bronze came from Eddy Bernard in the men’s 100m T44.
