KUALA LUMPUR: “ I salute Adam Yoong’s family for the sacrifices they have made until their young son succeeded today.”
This is the praise and acknowledgement given by Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) president Tunku Tan Sri Imran Tuanku Jaa’far to Hanifah Yoong after his son Adam who is only 9-years-old became the youngest gold medal winner at the 2017 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games.
Adam pulled off one of the biggest upsets at Putrajaya Lake when he emerged champion in the tricks event, winning the third gold medal for the national waterski squad after garnering 3,860 points to beat Indonesia’s Dimas Ridho who scored 3,440 points.
The bronze medal went to another Indonesian, Febrianto Kadir who collected 3,140 points.
“It is a fantastic achievement by Adam as his exploits have made him the youngest athlete to win a gold medal at this SEA Games,” said Tunku Imran when met on the sidelines of the ice skating event at Empire City Mall Damansara.
“I just had to acknowledge and respect Adam’s parents as well who have sacrificed a lot in terms of finances, time and energy to nurture and develop their young son’s obvious talent.
“At present I see a many parents who make similar sacrifices especially to expose their children in sports such as waterski, ice skating and ice hockey which needs the participation of the younger generation,” added Tunku Imran.
Adam’s success completes Hanifah’s children’s dominance at Putrajaya Lake yesterday as older sister Aaliyah Yoong won two gold medals for Malaysia in the women’s trick and jump events respectively.
Hanifah is a very important individual as he is the one responsible for introducing the sport of waterski in Malaysia, and is also the father of Malaysia’s former Formula One driver, Alex Yoong.
Hanifah now holds the portfolio of the International Waterski and Wakeboard Federation’s (IWWF) representative for the IWWF Waterski & Wakeboard World Cup, as chairman of the Waterski & Wakeboard championship.
For the record, Adam’s success has not eclipsed his older sister’s record as Aaliyah emerged as one of the youngest athletes ever to win gold at the 2011 SEA Games edition in Palembang, Indonesia when she was only 8-years-old.