Olympics Medallists Zii Jia, Aaron & Wooi Yik Receive RM100,000 & A Chery SUV Each
Congratulations!
By Yap Wan Xiang — 23 Aug 2024, 10:57 AM
National badminton players Lee Zii Jia, Aaron Chia, and Soh Wooi Yik have been given RM100,000 and a Chery Tiggo 7 Pro each as a reward for their bronze medal finish at the Paris 2024 Olympics
According to the New Straits Times, the cash rewards were paid out by the National Sports Incentive Scheme (SHAKAM).
Commenting on Chia and Soh's win, who are both under the Badminton Association of Malaysia, Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh announced that the government, through the National Sports Council (NSC), decided to increase the reward to RM100,000 each.
This doubles the previous RM50,000 the athletes received for their bronze medals at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Lee was awarded a RM50,000 grant before the Paris Games and will now get an additional RM100,000 from the NSC to cover his expenses leading up to the Paris Olympics, reported Bernama.
Yeoh also confirmed that Lee will receive a lifetime pension of RM2,000 per month under the NSC's Permanent Olympics Incentive Scheme.
Yeoh thanked Chery for supporting Malaysian athletes and expressed a wish for more companies to follow its example
"We believe sports unite Malaysians, and we encourage the private sector to reward athletes for their success.
"Chery's gesture is significant as it celebrates all medal winners," Yeoh stated during the car handover ceremony at Chery's showroom in Bandar Bukit Puchong yesterday, 22 August.
Chery Tiggo 7 Pro, a five-seater sports utility vehicle, is valued at RM123,800.
Soh plans to give his new Chery Tiggo 7 Pro to his father, mentioning that this is the first time he has given his family such a significant gift
"I will give this car to my father as a token of appreciation to my family, who have taken such good care of me all this time. Without them, I wouldn't have been able to succeed, especially on the Olympic stage.
"My father had asked me about this car before, but I hadn't told him yet because I wanted to surprise him," the New Straits Times quoted him as saying.
Soh's father, Goon Chup, is also a former national badminton player.
It was previously reported that the government was prepared to reward Paris Olympic gold medallists with RM1 million, silver medallists with RM300,000, and bronze medallists with RM100,000.
Additionally, they would also be given a lifetime pension of RM5,000 for gold medallists, RM3,000 for silver medallists, and RM2,000 for bronze medallists, reported Berita Harian.
