PUTRAJAYA: Youth and sports minister Hannah Yeoh said it is difficult for every sporting association to set up a foundation specifically to look after the welfare of former athletes in their retirement years.
Yeoh said sporting associations had different financial capabilities, depending on sponsorship and public support.
“It is good if every association can have its own foundation but it is not reasonable to say every association should. If associations themselves are struggling for funds, how can they set up a foundation?” she said at a press conference today.
Yeoh commended the Malaysian Hockey Foundation, which was established in 1992, for helping former national hockey players, saying this could encourage young people to get involved in sports.
She said the assistance included its sports retirement aid scheme for former players, which was based on their number of appearances with the national squad.
Under the scheme, Baljit Singh Charun Singh received RM41,840, followed by Izwan Firdaus Ahmad Tajuddin (RM19,040), Joel Samuel Van Huizen (RM10,400) and P Prabhakaran (RM10,400).
Izwan said he was touched by the gesture because people still remembered his sacrifices for the country as a player, particularly his silver medal in the 2010 Asian Games.
“Such recognition means a lot to former players because we sacrificed so much in training and playing for the country,” Izwan said. - FMT
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