FOR ‘SPECIAL ONE’
Eddy comes good as expected in his first Asean Para Games
REPORTS BY JUGJET SINGH jug jet@nst.com.my palsy) 100m race at the National Stadium yesterday when he clocked 12.45s.
He is indeed special, because it was his first Asean Para Games and he blazed away with a gold medal.
Today, he is competing in the long jump and hopes to hit paydirt again.
And then paralympian Siti Noor Iasah Ariffin surprised the
“I went in expecting a gold and delivered it for Malaysia. I really feel special and at the top of the world right now,” said Eddy.
He was selected based on his performance in the East Malaysia Para Athletics Championships in Kuching in August last year.
Then, Eddy won the 100m gold gallery in the women’s T20 800m (learning disability) by clocking 2:34.12, The 400m runner had just started training for the longer distance a month ago.
Those who watched Iasah run the race of her life at the Rio Paralympics in the T20 400m, would surely remember how she was “cheated” of a bronze medal.
Neck-and-neck with world record holder Barbara Niewiedzial for the bronze medal, the Pole dived and fell at the finish line to steal the medal.
And this was Iasah’s first competitive race since Rio.
“Yes I did feel disappointed for in 12.65s and cleared 5.71m for silver in the long jump.
“This (time) is also my personal best and I still can’t believe I came out first in my Games debut. This will inspire me to train harder and lower my time,” said Eddy.
The Form Four student of SMK Beluran in Sandakan said his inspiration is Canadian sprinter Andre de Grasse, who won silver in the 200m and bronze in the not winning an Paralympic bronze, but it did not break me.
“It only taught me to be more resilient and that’s why I ran my first 800m race today (yesterday).
“I wanted to try something new, and even though I only started endurance training for the 800m a month ago, I still managed to win gold.”
Tomorrow, she will be running in her pet event — the 400m — and does not expect her party to be spoiled by another diver at the finish line.
She clocked 58.55s in the semifinals in Rio, and hopes to dip below 60s again tomorrow. 100m and 4x100m relay at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. Why does he like de Grasse? “Grasse is such a cool runner and he always looks like he is under no pressure. I want to be like him. I want to run as cool as him. I like his style,” said Eddy.
Good luck to the budding teenager in the long jump today. He could be as cool as his idol de Grasse while running for the jump.