SEPANG: The 2024 Paris Paralympic athletes were welcomed home at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 1 with thunderous applause from local sports fans last night.
The Malaysian contingent, led by Chef de Mission Datuk Subramaniam Raman Nair, arrived at 8.10 pm on an Oman Air flight, accompanied by gold medalists Cheah Liek Hou in badminton and Bonnie Bunyau Gustin in weightlifting.
Approximately 200 sports enthusiasts celebrated the return of Datuk Abdul Latif Romly and Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli, who won silver in the long jump and shot put, respectively, as well as Eddy Bernard, who secured bronze in the 100-metre sprint, along with 25 other Paralympic athletes.
Also present to welcome them were Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh, secretary-general Dr. K. Nagulendran, and National Sports Council (MSN) director-general Abdul Rashid Yaakub.
Malaysia finished in 42nd place, securing two gold medals, two silver medals, and one bronze, at the games which took place from Aug 28 to Sept 8.
Meanwhile, Abdul Rashid said that the medal achievements were commendable and not far from the target set by the Malaysian Paralympic Council.
"We welcomed the initial targets. MSN supported them, and while we acknowledge that they were not fully achieved, it is still a significant accomplishment. The athletes did their best to win gold,” he said.
