KUALA LUMPUR: Sprinter Annie Choong, who was the first Malaysian woman to compete in the Olympics, in 1956 in Melbourne, died yesterday. She was 90.
Annie ran the 100m in the Melbourne Olympics, clocking 12.73 seconds to finish fourth in the heats.
Annie was the only woman athlete among 32 Malaysian competitors in the Melbourne Games.
Annie was a legend as she inspired other Malaysian women to follow in her footsteps and take up sports in the 1950s.
When I interviewed Annie a few years ago, she told me that she used to cycle from her house in Ampang to Batu Road everyday to train in preparation for the Melbourne Olympics.
Annie said there was not enough money to send Malaysian athletes to the Melbourne Olympics, and the athletes, themselves, had to go from shop to shop in Kuala Lumpur to look for sponsorship.
She said life was tough then, but it taught them to become dedicated and good athletes.
Many top women's athletes like Datuk B. Rajamani, Datuk Marina Chin and others were inspired by Annie.