KUCHING: A total of 13 Sarawak representatives comprising para athletes, coaches, and support officers will participate in the German-Sarawak Special Athlete Sportsman programme taking place in Berlin, Germany from 16 to 25 June.

According to Minister for Women, Early Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development, Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah, the programme represents a valuable international collaboration involving training sessions, competitions, and technical briefings with German Paralympic experts.

The delegation will be led by President of the Sarawak Sports and Recreation Association for Persons with Special Needs (PESRON), Matthew Chin Hiong Choi, and also joined by athletes such as Richard Ganie James Sigan, a gold medallist at Para SUKMA 2018, 2022, and 2024, as well as Nur Farhani Kudus, a UiTM student who recently won a bronze medal at the IPC Grand Prix India.

“One of the key figures they will meet is Ralph Paulo, Head of the Brandenburg Paralympic team, who has helped German athletes secure more than 20 international gold medals, including at the Rio, Tokyo, and Paris Paralympics,” said Dato Sri Fatimah during a press conference at Baitul Makmur II on Thursday.

She added that the programme will also involve coaching sessions with nutritionists, sports psychologists as well as visits to world-class training facilities in Germany.

“We hope that the knowledge and experience gained from this trip will be fully utilised to further enhance the performance of Sarawak para athletes, aiming for greater excellence at both the Asian and global levels,” she said. -UKASnews