Fatimah voices out against age limit for Para Sukma

KUCHING (March 16): Sarawak has never been for any age limit imposed on athletes in para sports. This is according to Minister of Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah who maintain that sports should remain a platform to empower persons with disabilities.

“At any point of time, whether during meetings or outside meetings, Sarawak has never agreed to the new regulation that limits the age,” she told reporters after receiving a courtesy call from federal Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports Mordi Bimol at her office at Baitulmakmur II Building on Monday.

The controversy stems from a decision made by the Supreme Council for Para Sports on Jan 29 to lower the maximum age limit for the upcoming Para Malaysia Games. Under the revised rules, athletes must be between 12 and 40 years old to compete compared with the previous age bracket of 14 to 45 used in earlier editions.

The move by the federal Ministry of Youth and Sports and National Sports Council was aimed at strengthening long-term talent development by focusing on younger athletes who could represent the country in future international competitions. However, the decision has drawn criticism from several stakeholders who argue that many experienced athletes aged between 41 and 45 are still competitive and have already been preparing for the 2026 Para Sukma.

“We don’t limit the age. Athletes themselves will know when it is time for them to step back. What we want is to give opportunity and space to every athlete who is interested in sports.

“If the age is capped at 40, we will lose more than 20 athletes who will not be able to take part and Sarawak currently has about 200 para-athletes in total,” Fatimah said.

She also raised concerns over another new requirement that there must be at least four athletes from three states registered for an event at Para Sukma to take place. The previous regulation only require foyur athletes from two states for an event to proceed.

“This will also limit the opportunity and space for our athletes to compete,” she said.

“The principle of sports for persons with disabilities is empowerment. While we pursue excellence, we must not forget that the fundamental principle is to empower persons with disabilities,” she added.