BREAKING his silence for the first time since testing positive for Covid-19, national hammer thrower Jackie Wong Siew Cheer announced yesterday he was doing fine in quarantine.
While the news came as a relief to the sports fraternity, Jackie urged his friends and others to continue praying for his father.
Jackie, the first national athlete to test positive for Covid-19, is believed to have contracted the virus from his father, Sarikei Member of Parliament, Wong Ling Biu.
The duo are currently being treated at the Sibu Hospital in Sarawak.
Making a statement for the first time since he tested positive on Monday, Jackie said in a Facebook posting yesterday: “I was confirmed positive a day after my father had tested positive.
“I am currently being quarantined and am receiving treatment at the Sibu Hospital.
“So far, I am in a stable and healthy condition. My father's condition has improved today compared to a few days ago but he still needs assistance from a breathing machine.
“Please continue to pray for my father and family members.
“I would also like to remind everyone not to share fake news and those not verified by the health ministry.”
The National Sports Council (NSC) believe that Jackie had been infected when he visited his father in Sarawak on March 11, when Ling Biu had fallen ill, and not when they met in Kuala Lumpur on March 1 (when his father was still healthy).
After Jackie was tested positive for Covid-19, the NSC quarantined 37 athletes (who had been in close contact with him) at Bukit Jalil while 10 officials are in self isolation. The NSC facilities that Jackie visited were disinfected.
The NSC have shut down all their facilities across the country and halted all training programmes in line with the government’s Movement Control Order.