NSC mull over health check for all athletes

KUALA LUMPUR: The National Sports Council (NSC) intend to make it compulsory for athletes from all sports in the country to undergo regular medical check-ups following the sudden death of cager Jacky Ng Kiat Kee recently.

The 25-year-old power forward/centre was playing in an invitational tournament in Jinjiang, China, with the national team when he suffered a fatal cardiac arrest whilst on the bench.

NSC director-general Datuk Seri Zolkples Embong said he was shocked and saddened to hear of Jacky’s passing, having met the player at the Maba (Malaysia Basketball Association)Li-Ning sponsorship event on July 15.

“It comes as a real shock that this could happen to a young athlete. And I just met him a couple of weeks ago. So, I amshocked and saddened. We feel the loss because, from what I hear, he was an upcoming talent with full of potential,” Zolkples said at the NSC’s buka puasa (breaking of fast) do on Tuesday.

Zolkples said he would discuss the possibility (of compulsory regular medical check-ups for athletes in all sports) with National Sports Institute (NSI) chief executive officer Datuk Dr Ramlan Abdul Aziz.

“We have to make sure that we have the services available for them ... if not, we’ll try to find suitable alternatives like government hospitals to meet the athletes’ needs,” he said.