The Usual Problem With Malaysian Sports Is Malaysians

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The ugly truth, our sports associations do not have enough community support or participation. They’ve given up on themselves as a collective and resigned to hope the next chairman will give more to them. From ministries, then schools through to local councils, the associations cannot demand.
Praba Ganesan, MMO
One of the key misunderstandings in our sports is to assume the errors — to evolve our sporting culture, resources and organisation structures — are everyone’s except the rakyat.
Unpopular opinion? Most certainly but not an ounce untrue.
The Paris Olympics goes down the final stretch with four days left and major nations slug it out at the top of the medal counts.
Minor nations like Malaysia, at the other end of the count, typically turn up the heat in the media and not in the ring, to ask for resignations. Top of the chopping block are personalities like Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh and OCM (Olympic Council of Malaysia) President Norza Zakaria.
Let’s posit this here, to revisit. Australia — population 26 million — will have at the end of August 8, 18 gold medals (41 medals in total) to occupy third spot in the medal tally. They already exceeded their 2020 Tokyo gold haul and days still remain. They may hit 25 golds.
Memories of Mexico City in Paris
In Paris, our sole track and field athlete Muhammad Azeem Mohd Fahmi finished last in his heat, clocking 10.45 seconds. Fifty-six years ago, our representative Mani Jegathesan ran 10.35 seconds over the same distance at the 1968 Mexico Olympics. Tenth of a second faster half a century ago.
To improve context, the winner in 1968 was American Jim Hines in 9.95 seconds. This week, American Noah Lyles won with 9.79, more than a tenth of a second faster 50 years later.
The gulf in performance, or rather the opposite directions the two nations are moving compels discussion.
Compare apples and apples. There is no expectation for Malaysians — or South-east Asians — to win the Olympic sprint in the conceivable future. However, there is expectation for results to move forward, not regress.
Muhammad Azeem is not the centre of Malaysia’s track and field malaise but he is an example of how far the Malaysian Athletics Federation (MAF) has slipped. The MAF is representative of the overall drop across Malaysian sports diligently executed since the early 1980s.
The steady erosion, to the point Malaysia from being the dominant track and field squad in SEA Games is an also-ran presently. In SEA Games 2023 Cambodia, Malaysia yielded five golds out of 44 possible. Thirty years before at Singapore 1993, Malaysia took 14 of the 44 track and field golds and topped the tally.
These determined falls are not one offs.
Ball no ball, still losing
The same story is all over the Malaysian sports fraternity. Steady declines.
And the faux pas by those on top, such as Hannah Yeoh wooing to be Thai shuttler Kunlavut Vitidsam’s fangirl — who incidentally ended our own Lee Zii Jia’s gold ambitions — and Norza defending his family’s presence at the Olympics Village as part of his personal quota, bring attention to smaller sins.
The true horror of Malaysian sports is that so many have failed to do the minimum, let alone sustain the better days of the 1960s and 1970s.
We have to own the mess. Otherwise, nothing changes. First thing to overcome problems is to admit them, and the second pivotal thing is to own the mistakes.
Norza is reported to let go his BAM (Badminton Association of Malaysia) leadership post, though he still sits over badminton as OCM chief. Yeoh’s seat is the prime minister’s prerogative.
There will still be non-sports persons heading the OCM or ministry. It will remain the blind leading the blind.
Remember, Norza wanted to leave BAM last year and the minister asked him to stay.
Why do sports associations want politicians or government backed millionaires to head them? That is the better question. BAM eyes Miti Minister Zafrul Aziz to replace Norza.
The mad, mad love for members of the feudal elite to head our sports associations even if they do absolutely no actual executive work is with foundation. They head those associations because of two things, funds — from government and private sector— are possible when the connected person is on top and the over-bureaucratic make-up of Malaysian power demands an equally powerful person to lobby for action.
The ugly truth, our sports associations do not have enough community support or participation. They’ve given up on themselves as a collective and resigned to hope the next chairman will give more to them. From ministries, then schools through to local councils, the associations cannot demand.
How many sports facilities did your local council build by contracting those with no sports knowledge? Are those facilities well maintained with adequate resources together with access guaranteed and promotions ongoing with sporting communities?
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