Rian hopes to grab more monetary rewards with another treble

ANIMAL lover Mohamed Rian Prahasta (pic) of Indonesia is living his dream.

The 33-year-old father of two designed his 400mil rupiah (RM120,000) doublestorey house with the lucrative incentives he received for his three-gold feat in table tennis T8 (moderate impairment) at the Singapore Asean Para Games two years ago.

The soft-spoken Rian received a total of 600mil rupiah (RM180,000) for his achievements. Indonesia rewarded each gold medallist 200mil rupiah (RM60,000).

No wonder Rian is all fired up to emulate his feat in the Kuala Lumpur Asean Para Games.

He has already bagged one – with Bonyu Tri Mulyo in the team event – at the Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MiTEC) on Wednesday.

“My lifestyle has changed since the Singapore Games two years ago. I was a nobody and lived a simple life. My first interest in sport was football. I am a huge Chelsea fan and I usually play in my neighbourhood.

“But everything changed after I took the advice of my ‘orang tua’ (parents). They advised me to take up table tennis.

“After taking it seriously a few years ago, I found that I had the talent to go far. My first success was in Singapore (2015).

“I’m confident I can win the treble again. I will focus on the Asian Para Games in Palembang next year but my goal is to be in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.

“I’m happy with what I have achieved. I designed my own house in Jawa Barat and I even have a collection of animals — birds, two monkeys and Komodo dragons. It is my hobby,” said Rian.

Last year, Rian added another 400mil rupiah (RM120,000) to his coffers after winning the singles, doubles and team events at the National Para Championships in Jakarta.