Hannah Prioritises Empowering Former Athletes In Sports Development

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 12 (Bernama) -- Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh wants her legacy to be centred on empowering former athletes to support current and future athletes, believing that their experience and deep understanding of athletes' needs make them invaluable in this role.

Hannah said one of her key goals before completing her term is to ensure the right people are placed in the right positions within the sports ecosystem.

However, she acknowledged and respected the positions of those elected through the democratic process. 

Reflecting on her experience at the Paris Olympics 2024, Hannah said she spent considerable time with Malaysian squash legend Datuk Nicol Ann David, who served as the country’s deputy chef de mission.

Hannah expressed hope that Nicol would continue to assist her in nation-building through sports development.

"In my short time as Minister, I have appointed a lot of key former athletes to help me. It is my belief that former athletes understand sports and the needs of athletes. In the Road To Gold committee, I have three key former athletes to assist me - (badminton legend) Lee Chong Wei, Nicol, (former national hockey player) Mirnawan Nawawi. 

"In Majlis Sukan Negara, I have Olympian Suriaghandi Suppiah and Chong Wei to assist me. In Institut Sukan Negara, I have Datuk Marina Chin and Nicol to assist me. In YAKEB I have Farah Ann, Jeffrey Ong and Soo Beng Kiang to assist me," she said in a Facebook post today. 

Hannah also appointed former swim queen Nurul Huda as the chair of the Safe Sports Committee, alongside sports administrators like Datuk Seri Windsor John of the Asian Football Confederation (Perbadanan Stadium Malaysia) and Datuk Stuart Ramalingam as the Road to Gold coordinator.

-- BERNAMA