AFTER decades of waiting, national bowler Mohd Firdaus Mohamad finally realised his lifelong dream today by clinching the men’s singles gold medal at the 2025 SEA Deaf Games at the Jaya Ancol Bowling Centre here.
His victory with a score of 1,302 pinfalls was not only a personal achievement but also the sweetest moment of the 43-year-old athlete’s career, who first picked up bowling at the age of seven.
“Praise be to Allah Almighty. This is the day I have been waiting for. For the first time, I won a gold medal in the singles event. Before this, I never won singles gold in any competition. Previously, I had won a gold in the trio event.
“I have been bowling since I was seven years old. My mother was the one who first taught me when I was a child, right until I grew up and pursued my studies,” he said through a sign language interpreter here today.
The Selangor-born athlete admitted that his talent and passion came from his mother, Zaharah Md Dom, 69, a former bowler from the 1980s who was his first coach and remains his inspiration to this day.
Despite communication challenges as his coach, Tay Teck Kheng, is a normal person, Mohd Firdaus said they managed to overcome it by using messaging apps and written notes to ensure every technique and instruction was clearly understood.
“The coach wrote all the instructions and techniques in the training book. Those tips are what I held onto until now. Praise be to Allah, it has finally borne fruit with this gold medal,” he said gratefully.
Meanwhile, his teammate Ho Choon Seong added to Malaysia’s medal tally by winning the silver medal with 1,249 pinfalls, while George C. Maniozo of the Philippines secured bronze with 1,226 pinfalls.
In the women’s singles event, Maria Lovella Catalan of the Philippines claimed gold with 1,127 pinfalls, while Malaysia’s Siong Mui Hong took silver (1,085 pinfalls) and Siw Sing Hie bagged bronze (1,045 pinfalls). – Bernama
