Kuala Lumpur: The ground-breaking success of being crowned Sportswoman of the Year at the 2024 National Sports Awards (ASN) has fuelled the spirit of national lawn bowler Nor Farah Ain Abdullah for the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, Nor Farah stated that securing a place in the 2026 Commonwealth Games will be challenging as she has to compete with other senior lawn bowlers. “My biggest target is to compete in the 2026 Commonwealth Games but I have to compete against my seniors first,” she said after the 2024 ASN ceremony.
Nor Farah rose to prominence in 2024 with a Fours gold medal at the 15th Asian Lawn Bowls Championship in Pattaya, Thailand. Her achievement was further solidified by becoming the first lawn bowler to win the National Sportswoman trophy. Currently resting after a right shoulder injury, she aims to return to competition at the 2025 Hong Kong International Lawn Bowls Classic scheduled for November.
Expressing gratitude for her award, Nor Farah described it as the pinnacle of her career and thanked Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh, the Malaysian Lawn Bowls Federation, and the National Sports Council for their support. She notably acknowledged the federation’s president, Datuk Awalan Abdul Aziz, for his contributions to lawn bowling.
Nor Farah gained attention after her victory in the women’s singles gold medal match at the 2024 World Indoor Bowls Championships in Guernsey, Channel Islands, last April.
Meanwhile, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) secretary-general, Datuk Kenny Goh, accepted the Sportsman of the Year Award on behalf of the national men’s doubles pair, Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik. They were honored for their achievements, including their status as the 2022 world doubles champions. Kenny expressed hope that this recognition will inspire Aaron-Wooi Yik and other shuttlers to achieve further success on the global stage.
Aaron-Wooi Yik, currently ranked fifth in the world, were absent from the ceremony as they are competing in the 2025 Thailand Open tournament. The pair retained their Olympic bronze medal after defeating Danish pair Kim Astrup-Anders Skaarup Rasmussen at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
In related news, BAM deputy president 1 Datuk V. Subramaniam commented on the ongoing contract negotiations with the country’s top women’s doubles pair, Pearly Tan and M. Thinaah. Their future with BAM will be determined after the conclusion of the 2025 Thailand Open.