Cheah Liek Hou has heard the same remark from his wife, Dewi Febriana, repeatedly over the past three years: “Why can’t you be a normal husband who takes the family on holiday?”
After winning his second Paralympic gold medal in Paris this morning, the badminton player is finally taking a break before considering a third consecutive victory at the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
Cheah equalled long jumper Abdul Latif Romly as Malaysia’s only two-time Paralympic gold medallists by clinching the SU5 (upper limb impairment) category title, defeating Indonesia’s Suryo Nugroho 21-13, 21-15 in just 42 minutes at the Porte de La Chapelle Arena.
Abdul Latif won T20 (intellectual impairment) long jump gold in Rio in 2016 and repeated the feat in Tokyo five years later. He is also competing in Paris.
“My wife has sacrificed a lot for my career, and we haven’t had a holiday since 2021, after the Tokyo Paralympics,” said the 36-year-old Cheah.
“I’ve been so focused on defending my title that we haven’t had time to travel. Now, it’s time to reward my wife with a holiday.”
One of the destinations the couple plans to visit is Dewi’s hometown of Medan, Indonesia. Medan holds a special place for Cheah as it is also his mother’s birthplace.
When asked about the possibility of securing a third consecutive gold in Los Angeles in 2028, Cheah said he would give it some thought.
“I’ll be 40 by then, but it might be possible. For now, my target is the 2026 Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.”
Cheah’s gold medal is a gift from the Paralympic Council of Malaysia (PCM) to the nation, which celebrated Merdeka on Aug 31.
PCM president, Datuk Seri Megat D Shahriman Zaharudin, had pledged a minimum of four gold medals in Paris to reach a perfect 10 after Malaysia won three golds in Rio in 2016 and Tokyo five years later.
Malaysia narrowly missed another medal when Muhammad Fareez Anuar lost a hard-fought bronze match to Indonesia’s Dheva Anrimusthi. Dheva, who had lost the Tokyo final to Cheah, won 17-21, 21-19, 21-12.
Malaysia won its first medal at the Paris Games on Sept 1 when Eddy Bernard finished third in the T44 men’s 100m race (single below-knee amputation or an athlete with moderately reduced function in one or both legs).
The country has another chance to win a medal tomorrow morning in athletics when 2016 gold medallist Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli competes in the F20 (intellectual impairment) shot put event.
Muhammad Ziyad failed to defend his title in Tokyo after arriving late to the waiting room. His event in Paris begins at 1.10am Malaysian time.
