National Treasure

Our cover star this month hardly needs any introduction, however, you might not recognise her without her usual chlorine-scented, wet-hair look. Pandelela Rinong rose to fame as the first Malaysian female athlete to have won an Olympic medal, taking home the bronze during the 2012 London Olympics, for diving in the women’s 10m platform event. Known for her fearlessness and clean dives,, we managed to snag a precious day withh her as the pint-sized, sinewy Olympian has been training non-stop for the upcoming SEA Games—and good for us too, having one of our national treasures on the month thatt our country turns the big 60. In her interview, the usually reserved Pandelela opens up about dealing with criticism and negative comments on social media, how trustt is a luxury for her, what diving meanss to her, and the sacrifices she’s made. “People don’t know what it feels like to be an athlete,” she was telling us. “Butut if they’re really in my shoes, perhaps theyey will understand more and wouldn’t be so quick to criticise, and judge so badly…dly… Everyone has their own struggle whichch you don’t know about.” During the shoot, she was a professionalssional through and through, hardly uttered a complaint even when she had water splashed on her for one of the shots. But she lit up when she tried on a Michael Kors fringe dress, showing us a glimpse of the girly 24-year-old as she shimmied around for a boomerang video (check it out on our Instagram!). For another shot, putting on a Bally beret reminded her of the cutesy fashion tendencies of K-popdom, which she’s a big fan of. So if you want to know more about our star diver, do turn to page 130. Also in this issue, we interview the people behind MAGIC (Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre) and those that have benefitted from its programmes and initiatives. It’s a competitive market out there, and there’s no denying that the development of a strong and sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem is a key economic driver for the nation to remain relevant in the global landscape. Turn to page 142 for our exclusive interviews with Ashran Dato’ Ghazi, Faisal Ariff and Joanne Ho. It’s an issue dedicated to national treasures. Speaking of, let us rally behind and cheer on our nation’s representatives as they compete in the 29th SEA Games on our home turf, from August 19 to 30. It may be the acronym for Southeast Asia, but I’d rather define it as ‘Success, Excellence, Ambition’—because that’s what we Malaysians strive for. Malaysia Boleh!