Sportsman of the Year award gives timely boost to Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik ahead of triple challenge
Malaysia's men's doubles badminton pair, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik, aiming for a second world title later this year, received a timely boost ahead of three challenging tournaments in as many weeks.
Chia and Soh, who won the world title in 2022, won the National Sportsman Award for 2024 for defending their Olympic Games bronze medal by beating Denmark's Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen in Paris.
The world No. 5 pair didn't attend the awards ceremony, graced by Malaysia's King, Sultan Ibrahim, as they are competing in the Thailand Open. They will play France's Julien Maio-William Villeger in the first round.
They were selected ahead of Lee Zii Jia (badminton), Mohamad Aniq Kasdan (weightlifting), Wong Weng Soon (wushu), and Latif Maxzakir (pencak silat).
After Thailand, Chia and Soh will compete in the Malaysia Masters (May 20-25) and Singapore Open (May 27-June 1). The events come a month after Chia and Soh claimed their first Asian title by winning the Badminton Asia Championship. The pair defeated China's Chen Boyang and Liu Yi 21-19, 21-17 in a thrilling 46-minute final held in Ningbo, China.
They had stated then that their goal for this year was to reclaim the world crown they won three years ago, to become Malaysia's first badminton world champions. Chia and Soh have never won more than one international title a year, but this could be another record-setting year for them, as they have adapted quickly to the tutelage of new coach Herry Iman Pierngadi.
The Indonesian started working with the Malaysian pair in January after 30 years with the Indonesian BA, where he trained some of the world's best doubles combinations. Among them were world and Olympic Games champions Markis Kido-Hendra Setiawan and Chandra Wijaya-Tony Gunawan.
Meanwhile, Nor Farah Ain Abdullah is the first female lawn bowler to win the National Sportswoman of the Year. She received the top prize following her gold medal at the 2024 World Indoor Bowls Championships in Guernsey.
Nor Farah Ain won the award ahead of Sin Li Jane (tenpin bowling), Nurul Izzah Izzati (track cycling), Nor Farah Mazlan (pencak silat), and Tan Cheong Min (wushu). Sin, however, didn't go home empty-handed, as she was part of the winning Women's Team with Natasha Mohamed Roslan, Gillian Lim, Nora Liyana Natasia Norkamal, Faten Najihah Ahmad Faik, and Nur Syazwani Sahar.
The national sepak takraw team won the Men's Team Award.
Bonnie Bunyau Gustin was crowned National Paralympic Sportsman after defending his gold medal at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games by breaking the world record in the 72kg category. The National Paralympic Sportswoman title was won by lawn bowls athlete Hasmunirah Maliki, who won the women's singles title at the 2024 World Field Bowling Championships.
The National Men's Coach Award went to powerlifting coach Jamil Adam, and the National Women's Coach Award went to Siti Rahmah Mohamed Nasir from pencak silat. Sunny Si Poh Heng from the Sarawak Tenpin Bowling Association and former president of the Malaysian Badminton Association, Tan Sri Norza Zakaria, were recipients of the Sports Leadership Award.
Melaka Governor Tun Mohd Ali Mohd Rustam was the recipient of the Sports Personality Award. Johor Motorsport Racing Team (JMR), Malaysian Deaf Sports Association, Selangor Red Giant (E-Sports MLBB), and the late sports commentator, Datuk Hasbullah Awang, received Special Awards.
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