SEPANG: Para badminton ace Cheah Liek Hou hopes the ongoing spat between the National Sports Council (NSC) and the Malaysian Paralympic Council (MPC) will be resolved amicably.
MPC president Datuk Seri Megat Shahriman Zaharudin had earlier blamed NSC for the national contingent's failure to meet the target of four gold medals at the Paris Paralympics.
However, Liek Hou, 36, who defended his gold in the men's singles SU5 (physical impairment) event, praised both the NSC and the National Sports Institute (NSI) for playing key roles in his success in Paris.
The eight-time world champion called for unity, urging all parties to work together to elevate the country's sporting standards, warning that conflicts would only hold back progress.
"NSC was among those who provided the most assistance, as did the NSI, as they fulfilled all our requests.
"We were even allowed to use NSC's futsal court in Bukit Jalil for training for one and a half months," said Liek Hou upon his arrival from Paris at KLIA here on Tuesday.
"During that time, I could focus entirely on training while staying at Casa 2 (in Bukit Jalil). If any issues arose, I had immediate access to physiotherapy, which greatly helped my recovery."
Liek Hou stressed that athletes should be able to focus solely on their achievements, without being distracted by infighting.
"If we can achieve positive results, why not maintain the current programmes or come together to discuss even better ones?"
Malaysia finished 42nd overall at the Paris Paralympics, securing two golds, two silvers, and a bronze.
The other gold came from powerlifter Bonnie Bunyau Gustin in the men's 72kg category.
Abdul Latif Romly (long jump T20) and Ziyad Zolkefli (shot put T20) bagged silvers, while Eddy Bernard secured the lone bronze in the 100m T44.