KUCHING, Sept 23 (Bernama) -- Who would have thought that fooling around with his friends by throwing bottles during their school days would one day lead to Ahmad Fikri Omar making a name for himself as a javelin thrower in the 2024 Malaysia Para Games (Para SUKMA)?
Well, believe it or not, that's how the Negeri Sembilan lad's throwing talent was supposedly discovered by a teacher when he was just 13 at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Pendidikan Khas Setapak in Kuala Lumpur.
"Those days, I would play with my friends and throw bottles. Maybe that's how Cikgu Karim saw my talent and asked me to train under him.
"He also told me that there are not many blind people like me who have the talent to hurl the javelin, which involves a special technique to bend your body before releasing it,” Ahmad Fikri, who defended the men's javelin F11 (visual impairment) gold medal with a throw of 29.94 metres (m) at Para SUKMA 2024, told Bernama at the Sarawak Stadium here today.
Muhammad Amirul Ahmad of Johor took silver with a throw of 24.36m while Sarawak's Leeyendy Jisen Abdullah settled for bronze with 19.66m.
Asked how he executes his move, Ahmad Fikri said he would always take three steps before releasing the javelin.
"I don't rely on instinct, instead I would count my steps before releasing the javelin. That's the technique para-athletes like me use,” he said.
The 27-year-old was also disappointed not to have broken the 16-year Games record of 30.63m set by Hairul Miran of Kuala Lumpur.
Nonetheless, Ahmad Fikri, who works as a masseuse in Kuala Lumpur, dedicated his success here as a wedding gift for his wife, 25-year-old Nor Syafina Ros Azizi, whom he married in February.
Ahmad Fikri, the 10th child of 12 siblings, hopes to don national colours for the first time at the 2025 ASEAN Para Games in Thailand.
"If possible, I want to represent the country as it's something I've always wanted to do... it doesn't matter which championships or Games,” he said.
-- BERNAMA
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