KUALA LUMPUR – Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh formally inaugurated the Team MAS campaign today, marking 50 days until the biggest multi-sport event in the world, the Paris Olympics.
The Youth and Sports Ministry is spearheading the campaign to foster a national movement rallying support for the nation’s athletes across all sporting events, notably, the upcoming Olympic Games commencing in late July.
“We have launched this theme, ‘Kita Semua Team MAS,’ because we want this to be a shared responsibility of all Malaysians, not just the athletes competing,” said Hannah at the National Sports Council (NSC) headquarters in Bukit Jalil.
“To be honest, this Team MAS launch would not be possible without the hard work of the athletes to qualify for the Games and the officials who have worked tirelessly to ensure sufficient support and services are provided for our athletes.”
Hannah announced that Malaysia will have 33 athletes participating in the Olympics and Paralympics combined.
Among them, 18 will compete in the Olympics scheduled from July 26 to August 11, while the remaining 15 will compete in the Paralympics from August 28 to September 8.
She also revealed that five more para-athletes have been chosen to represent Malaysia at the Paralympics.
“Initially, only 28 athletes were set to compete. However, we have received good news that five additional badminton para-athletes were confirmed just last night to participate in the Paralympics, bringing the total number of Malaysian athletes competing to 33,” she said.
The newly selected para-athletes include Cheah Liek Hou, Muhammad Fareez Anuar, Mohd Amin Burhanuddin, Muhammad Ikhwan Ramli, and Noor Azwan Noorlan.
The ministry hopes the campaign will encourage the athletes while fostering a strong sense of national support, with the ultimate goal of securing Malaysia’s first Olympic gold medal ever.
“The people must know that the support they give to our athletes when they compete is like every single Malaysian coming together to compete with our athletes.
“This is our call to action for Malaysians to show up for Team MAS,” Hannah added.
Notable attendees at the launch included Deputy Youth and Sports Minister Adam Adli Abdul Halim, Youth and Sports Ministry secretary-general K. Nagulendran, NSC director-general Abdul Rashid Yaakub, and vice-president of Paralympic Council Malaysia K. M. Rajendran. – June 6, 2024