KUALA LUMPUR – “If it wasn’t for him and his vision for Malaysian bowling, I wouldn’t be here today,” said Asia’s top bowler Rafiq Ismail, who dedicated his All-Events gold medal at the 27th Asian Tenpin Bowling Championships to the late Datuk Dr P. S. Nathan, in a heartfelt tribute.
Nathan, who founded the Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Congress (MTBC) in 1974 and served as its president for 50 years, died yesterday evening at the age of 90.
Earlier today, Rafiq and his teammates – Hafiz Zainuddin, Syafiq Ridhwan Abdul Malek, Tun Hakim Tun Hasnul Azam, and Izz Naqiuddin Putera Islahuddin – claimed silver in the team of five event, despite an impressive performance in the second block.
Team Malaysia amassed a six-game total of 6,423 pinfalls, finishing just behind Singapore (6,449), with Hong Kong (6,237) taking bronze.
“Dr Nathan’s passing is sad news for all of us. I want to dedicate my victory to him.
“He was always very caring and gave us a lot of great advice. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen much of him since the Covid-19 pandemic, as his health had started to decline.
“I joined the national team in 2013, but I was part of MTBC’s special squad from 2011-2012. I’ll always be grateful to Dr Nathan for creating that squad.
“If not for him, I wouldn’t be where I am today,” Rafiq told Scoop.
Despite narrowly missing out on defending the team gold, Rafiq remained positive.
“We gave it our all, and winning silver isn’t bad at all,” added the 27-year-old, who had already secured the men’s singles and trios gold earlier in the competition.
Rafiq will now focus on defending his gold medal in the Masters event.
Having also won the men’s and women’s doubles gold, Team Malaysia have surpassed their four-gold tally from the 2023 edition in Hong Kong.
Their best performance remains the 2019 Asian Championships, where they claimed six golds, one silver, and four bronze medals. – September 23, 2024