KUCHING: Para swimmer Shahafiq Abdullah from Sabah and para archer Loh Chi Hui from Pahang were honoured as the Best Male and Female Athletes at the Sarawak Para Malaysia Games (Para SUKMA) 2024.

The awards were presented by Malaysia’s Minister of Youth and Sports, Hannah Yeoh, during the closing ceremony at Stadium Perpaduan.

Shahafiq, 20, was named Best Male Athlete for his outstanding performance, where he broke four national records and won four gold medals, one silver, and one bronze.

His gold medal events included the 100m Freestyle S6, 50m Butterfly S6/S7, 100m Backstroke S5/S6, and 50m Freestyle S6.

Loh Chi Hui, 34, claimed the Best Female Athlete title after dominating in para archery.

She set one national record and two meet records while winning four gold medals.

Her top performances came in the Qualification Round of Individual Recurve W2/ST, Individual Recurve W2/ST, Mixed Team Recurve W2/ST, and Women’s Team Recurve W2/ST.

Both athletes were awarded RM2,000 in cash, a challenge trophy, and a commemorative trophy in recognition of their exceptional achievements.

Also present were the Sarawak Minister for Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development, Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, Minister for Women, Early Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development (KPWK), Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah, various Ministers, Excos, Deputy Ministers, Sarawak Deputy Minister of KPWK, who also serves as the Chef de Mission for the Sarawak Contingent, Datuk Mohammad Razi Sitam, Deputy State Secretary (Operation) and CEO of Para SUKMA XXI Sarawak 2024, Datu Hii Chang Kee, along with other honoured guests. -UKASnews