“I want to make sure other athletes won’t be forgotten the same way as me. These athletes work hard all their life, and they only deserve the best. When I started powerlifting in 1980, I never saw myself being rich from it because I knew it wasn’t a famous sport, and I was a disabled athlete.
I chose to train anyway, hoping that one day I would be a household name that could bring change to the sports scene.
Eventually I managed to win two bronze medals for Malaysia.
Yet here I am, in this tiny living room of mine with nothing to offer but my story.
I was a seven time paralympian, an ice cream seller, a tailor and also a lift attendant.
Those were some very tough times, I still feel like I had been used like a piece of rag cloth.
I haven’t signed an autograph for so long, this is the first time in about five years.
I try not to complain, but it’s hard when there are four other mouths besides mine to feed.
My children are in school and my son wants to be a powerlifter like me.
He even has a picture of Arnold Schwarzenegger hung up in the wall.
How will I show him this is a sustainable future when I live in dump like this?
It breaks my heart to think about this, but I am really grateful disabled athletes now get the same treatment as able-bodied athletes – they truly deserve it”.
Story contributed by May Alexandra
Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa
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(This post was first published on September 14th 2016)
