HOUSING and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamarudin today congratulated the Penang state government for hosting the Asia Pacific Masters Games (APMG) 2018.
“It’s very gutsy of them to take up the challenge to hold the Games here and for the first time in Asia,” Zuraida said when she came to Penang Free School (PFS) to witness the softball competition and also later to present the prizes to the men’s and women’s winners.
“It’s not easy as it involves a lot of games, just to run a softball competition itself is a tedious job, what more with different age categories.
“In all, they have 21 games. The whole Penang rocks. I really salute them.”
Also present were APMG 2018 president Chong Eng, Penang Island City Council (MBPP) president Datuk Yew Tung Seang, AMPG 2018 technical chairman Datuk Low Beng Choo, AMPG 2018 chief executive officer Linda Geh, Softball Association of Malaysia president See Kok Wooi, and Penang Softball Association secretary Alwyn Choo Abdullah.
The tournament, which was originally scheduled to be held at the Universiti Sains Malaysia, was switched to PFS because the rain on Friday made the USM pitch too soggy.
And for Zuraida, the visit to PFS was like walking down memory lane as she had represented Singapore in softball at the PFS pitch on many occasions in the 70s.
“Penang Free School has always been the preferred field. They provide the best field for softball. It motivates us as players when the field is good,” she said.
Then, turning to Alwyn Choo, she said: “He was my national coach, he’s still around and I’m still around. I used to play catcher. A catcher looks at everybody and controls the game. I control the pitcher, when I see the way the batter stand, I say give me an outside ball, give me a drop ball, give me a rising ball, or give me a curve ball. So, those are the things in softball on how to strike out an opponent.
“It’s the games that test your mental strength and reflexes. You’ve to have a good strategy and be able to think fast about your next move. I was the livewire of the team. That’s part of psychology of the game. That’s why I say it’s a very interesting game. Players can get addicted to it.”
Asked about Zuraida’s performance, Alwyn Choo could recall that she was a very dedicated player and never gave coaches any headache.
Although the APMG 2018 softball competition attracted only four men’s teams and three women’s teams, Zuraida said it could be that news of the tournament did not reach many players since it was organised for the first time in Penang.
After she stopped playing softball at the age of 40, Zuraida, whose last tournament was the Asian Championships in Jakarta in 1984, turned to coaching students for a spell before launching into a political career. She and Low were also in the same national team that once won a SEA Games bronze medal.
Chong Eng, who herself was also an active softball player as a captain and pitcher for Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (UPM), thanked Zuraida for coming to support the softball competition.
“I found out that quite a number of high ranking officers have some sports background. Even our Datuk Bandar (Yew) takes part in swimming and cycling. So, it’s not a coincidence. Sports persons have the extra capacity, are resilient, disciplined, and have good fighting spirit,” said Chong Eng.
“One of the purposes in organising the APMG 2018 is to promote a healthy lifestyle. Any senior should not stop exercising. You need to exercise as your age advances to slow down the ageing process. After a game, you will feel very happy.
“On top of that, by organising this international multi-level sports in Penang, we want to give an opportunity to our local sports organisations in Penang to increase their capacity and learning experience.”
The Pythons, consisting of mostly Perak players, won the men’s gold medal as they were undefeated in six matches in the round robin competition. T. Karunanithi was the star of their team in their last match by scoring a home run against Penang All Stars.
Aces and Xgene Royale, fielding mostly players from Kuala Lumpur, took the silver and bronze medals respectively.
In the women’s competition, Penang Panthers won the gold medal ahead of Delta in the 35 age group while Southern Softball Club from Perth were declared the winners in the 45 age group category being the sole entry.
The Australians, however, did not waste their trip here as they were pitted against Penang Panthers and Delta in the round robin competition.
Story and pix by K.H. Ong