Kota Kinabalu: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said the State Government is committed to organising more sports programmes and supports efforts to produce more State athletes to reach international standard.
He made the assurance in his speech at the Sabah Sports Awards Ceremony held at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) on Tuesday which was delivered by Deputy Chief Minister II and Minister of Local Government and Housing Datuk Seri Joachim Gunsalam.
He hopes the allocation of RM97.5 million for youth and sports development through the Youth and Sports Ministry will strengthen the programme to produce more athletes who will bring glory to the State and the nation.
He added that the government also emphasises the development of sports for people with disabilities (OKU) and that had seen positive results with the State team capturing the overall title at the Para Sukma in Kuala Lumpur in 2022.
“The outstanding achievements of our para athletes did not stop there, we also had three athletes competing in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.
“I hope that Para Sports athletes will continue to be successful both at the national and international level. Well done to all Para Sports athletes,” he said.
He added that the increase in the amount of award winning prizes this year hopefully will motivate the State athletes to strive for more success in the future.
“I hope that the awards and recognition given tonight will be a source of motivation for the State’s young athletes with potential to achieve further success that we can be proud of.
“I also hope that the State’s athletes will continue to work hard to win more medals, especially gold medals, in every sports event they participate in the future,” he said.
Meanwhile, Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Ellron Angin said his ministry is in a discussion stage with some government agencies and individuals on giving out incentives to State athletes after their retirement in sports to safeguard their welfare.
He also re-emphasised the importance of collaboration with UMS (Universiti Malaysia Sabah) in applying sports science to help improve sports coaching and also to identify new talents.
