KUALA LUMPUR: Sports analyst Datuk Dr Pekan Ramli believes it is time for Malaysia's more senior para athletes to start moving into a mentoring role.
Pekan said this is to help develop the next generation of talent for Malaysia which is tougher to do in para sports compared to able-bodied sports.
The national contingent won two gold, two silver and one bronze at the Paris Paralympics which concluded on Sunday (Sept 8) and thus missed out on the four-gold target that had been set for them by the Malaysia Paralympic Council.
Shot putter Ziyad Zolkefli, 34, and long jumper Latif Romly, 27, had won gold in their respective events at the Kobe World Championships earlier this year but found themselves upstaged by younger talent in Paris.
The duo were forced to settle for silver in Paris. Latif is a two-time Paralympic gold medallist (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020) while Ziyad had won gold at Rio 2016.
"Our older athletes have already competed in three or more editions of the Paralympics and I hope in four years time, we will not be reading articles about them still carrying the nation's gold medal hopes," said Pekan yesterday.
"Other countries, especially those from Europe, are constantly developing new talent. We saw a number of athletes who did not feature at the Kobe World Championships earlier this year suddenly come into form in Paris.
"Age is a factor we have to take into consideration.
"Cheah Liek Hou for example is already 36 and will be 40 during the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympics.
"He has already achieved everything there is to achieve in badminton and has also been handsomely rewarded. Even (Youth and Sports Minister) Hannah Yeoh has congratulated him for becoming a millionaire.
"I think it is time for athletes like him to realise that he needs to help guide the younger ones and develop them into players who can fill his shoes and continue his legacy in the future.
"Players such as Fareez Anuar have shown they have strong potential, Fareez came close to winning a medal in Paris. With guidance from Liek Hou, I believe he will be able to perform even better."
"It is these types of athletes who we need to give extra support to because they are not far off the podium."
Liek Hou successfully defended the gold medal he won at Rio 2016 in the men's singles SU5 category at the Paris Paralympics last week.
Fareez, 28, competed in the same category in Paris and reached the semi-finals. He missed out on a medal after going down in three games to Dheva Anrimusthi of Indonesia in the bronze medal playoff.
Paralympic gold medallists receive RM1 million for each gold they win from the government via the National Sports Incentive Scheme. Gold medallists also receive an RM5,000 monthly payment through the scheme.