A gold to savour
Unwavering faith of coach helps Rafiq strike down gold
Malaysian sepak takraw coaches and players shed tears of joy as they ended a 24-year gold medal drought in the Asian Games. It was a stunning comeback for the Malaysian regu of Muhammad Zulkifli Abd Razak, Farhan Adam and Mohamad Azlan Alias, who were a game down and trailing 11-17 in the second game, as they showed dogged determination to win Malaysia’s fourth gold medal of the Games at the Jakabaring Sports City.
BOWLER Rafiq Ismail paid tribute to national coach Holloway Cheah for his role in his Asian Games success.
Holloway was down with food poisoning but the 76-year-old overcame his discomfort to watch Rafiq come from behind to beat defending champion Park Jong-woo of South Korea for the men’s Masters gold medal on Monday.
And Holloway’s presence in the midst of his own pain made all the difference for Rafiq.
The 21- year- old Rafiq appreciated Holloway’s fatherly love and his role as the man who discovered his talent at 13 and turned him into one of the best bowlers in the world.
“Sir (Holloway) was suffering from food poisoning but still sat there watch me bowl all my eight games (in the second block). He hardly said a word, but seeing him there was good enough for me,” said Rafiq.
“As soon as the second block ended, he lied down for a while and called for medical assistance.
“Then, he was back for the stepladder finals too. I told myself that I cannot let him down. And I didn’t.
“I’m who I’m today because of sir Holloway. He selected me into the special squad in 2010 and groomed me step by step. I’ve come a long way, I didn’t think I could reach this level.
“Sir Holloway did not only teach me and my teammates about bowling but taught us life values, the importance of discipline. I’m so proud and lucky to be his student.”
Holloway was eventually rushed to a clinic after the prize ceremony at the Games’ village for treatment before being discharged.
Holloway said the Indonesian Asiad would be the one to cherish despite having guided Malaysia to nine gold medals in five straight Games since Busan 2002.
“I’ll never forget this Asian Games,” said Holloway, who’s a gold medallist himself at the Bangkok 1978.
“I had a bad food poisoning but I just couldn’t leave Rafiq alone to fight the battle. God willing, the pain stopped a while to allow me to accompany the boy right until the last gold medal-winning throw,” said Holloway, who was given two jabs and was put on drips.
“I’m so proud of Rafiq. It was such a fantastic achievement for a boy his age. He’s definitely a special talent. The sky is the limit for him as long as he stays grounded.”
After bagging his first two Asiad medals, including a silver in the men’s trio with Timmy Tan and Ahmad Muaz, the humble Rafiq has set his sights on doing well at the men’s World Championships from Nov 23-Dec 5 in Hong Kong.