Mr Asia 1969 Solomon Esmanto dies
KUCHING: Local sports legend and Mr Asia 1969 Soloman Esmanto passed away early yesterday aged 75.
The first Sarawakian to win the Mr Asia title – whose real name was Suratinan Tamin – was born on June 1, 1943 in Kampung Jawa No 2 here.
He was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2014 following a visit to Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) to seek treatment for asthma.
According to his youngest daughter Serikartika Suratinan, Soloman was brought to SGH on Friday evening after experiencing a severe bout of vomitting.
“His condition was stable at first, but he was down with fever later.
“He breathed his last around 3am this (yesterday) morning.
“It is God’s will and we accept this loss. On behalf of my family, I wish to thank everyone for having helped my father all these years and also to those who have come to pay their respects,” said Serikartika when met at the family residence in RPR Fasa 2, Jalan Astana here yesterday.
Soloman is survived by his widow Fatimah Jalil. The couple had seven children. His eldest son passed away several years ago.
In his message of condolence, Sarawak Body building Association ( SBBA) president Dato Wee Hong Seng expressed his deep sadness over Soloman’s passing, hailing him as among the ‘ key pioneers of Sarawak bodybuilding.’
“We had been meeting each
We had been meeting each other late last year because I was arranging hospice care for him. In late January this year, we managed to solve his eyesight and hearing problems, with help from a couple of doctors. I did not get to see him as much as I would have liked to over the past several months, but I kept in touch with the doctors who were monitoring him. Dato Wee Hong Seng, Sarawak Bodybuilding Association (SBBA) president
other late last year because I was arranging hospice care for him. In late January this year, we managed to solve his eyesight and hearing problems, with help from a couple of doctors. I did not get to see him as much as I would have liked to over the past several months, but I kept in touch with the doctors who were monitoring him,” he said.
Incidentally, SBBA had passed a resolution during its annual general meeting in April this year that the trophy for the Athletic Physique category in the Mr Sarawak Championship be named ‘Soloman’s Cup’ in honour of the sport’s local icon.
“The SBBA team and I plan to visit the family within this week to pay our respects. We will see what we can do to help,” he added.
Soloman was laid to rest at Samariang Muslim Cemetery around 11am yesterday. The family is now observing the seven- day mourning period.
Solo man’ s interest in bodybuilding started in the early 1960s while still a student at St Thomas School, Kuching. His first major win was at Mr Hercules 1963 here.
It was also in this competition that he first used the stage name ‘Soloman Esmanto’.
He reported to the Prisons Department for duty on Sept 1, 1964 and served until Aug 1, 1998 when he retired as a subinspector.
Solomon’ s cr owning achievement was winning the overall title at Mr Asia 1969 held in Colombo, Sri Lanka (then Ceylon), becoming the first Sarawakian to obtain that honour.
Other major titles he lifted included Mr Malaysia and Mr Asean 1979.
He was the first in the state to be honoured with the ‘Sportsman of the Year’ award by the Sarawak State Sports Council ( MSNS).
Soloman was also the recipient of several state and federal awards namely Ahli Bintang Negeri Sarawak (ABS) in 1972, Pingat Pangkuan Negara ( PPN) in 1973, Pingat Perkhidmatan Setia ( PPS) in 1987, and Ahli Mangku Negara (AMN) in 2000.
Only two other Sarawakians have won the Mr Asia title since Soloman: the late Bujang Taha (1980 and 1981) and Liaw Teck Leong (2000).