KUALA LUMPUR: The head of the Malaysian lawn bowling team, Muhammad Soufi Rusli created personal history when he emerged as the sole national athlete to win gold medals in all senior categories at the Asia Lawn Bowls Championship.
The 37-year-old lawn bowler, with his partner Amirul Danial Abdul Rahim, completed his haul of gold medals at the tournament after defeating the Hong Kong representatives 21-10 in the men’s pair doubles final that took place last week in the Philippines.
Success did not come easily for Muhammad Soufi as he faced various pressures, including from the home athletes who were two-time defending champions.
“This was the only gold medal (in the pairs event) that I had not won at the Asian Championships since I started representing the country in 2008.
“Previously, I did not have the opportunity to play in this event because the coach saw me as being better in the fours and triples events. So when the coach chose me for this event, I challenged myself to win the gold medal and finally succeeded,“ he said when met recently.
For the record, Muhammad Soufi won gold in the men’s singles event in 2017 in India; two gold medals in the triples event in the 2014 and 2024 editions; and was champion thrice in the fours event in 2014, 2023 and 2025.
Meanwhile, when asked about his plans for the rest of the year, the Kuala Lumpur native said his focus will now be on the Australian Open Bowls tournament to be held from June 7 to 20 in the Gold Coast.
He also hopes to be selected to represent the country in the inaugural World Cup in Hong Kong in November and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next year.
