KUALA LUMPUR – Paralympic badminton champion Cheah Liek Hou and fellow Paris 2024 medal winners are still waiting for the RM60,000 cash incentive promised to each gold medallist, with patience running thin.
Liek Hou, who defended his SU5 men’s singles title in Paris last year, took to social media today to vent his frustration, saying the long wait had left him feeling “scammed.”
Speaking to Scoop later in the day, the 37-year-old revealed that the Paralympic Council of Malaysia (PCM) had repeatedly delayed the payout.
“I was patient enough to wait for a year, but enough is enough. That is why I took to social media,” he said.
“Initially, we were promised the incentives at an event scheduled for November 2024. That was pushed back to December.
“Then, we were told to wait again and that the incentives would be given before Hari Raya this year. In April, one of the companies held an event and gave us RM10,000. Assuming that was part of the RM60,000 promised, then where is the balance RM50,000?”
Liek Hou added that just two days ago, on Wednesday, someone from PCM contacted him about using his image on a special edition stamp honouring Malaysian athletes.
“I immediately asked about the incentives promised and never got a reply,” he said.
The six-time world champion, who first struck gold at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics before repeating the feat in Paris, highlighted growing unease among para-athletes.
In August last year, PCM president Datuk Seri Megat D. Shahriman Zaharudin had announced that three companies pledged RM60,000 for gold medallists, RM30,000 for silver, and RM15,000 for bronze.
Liek Hou clarified that the issue lies solely with PCM and not the Youth and Sports Ministry or the National Sports Council (NSC).
“Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh ensured the National Sports Incentive Scheme (SHAKAM) was paid to us a month after the Paris Paralympics ended, in October 2024. This matter is only with PCM,” he said.
Megat is expected to hold a press conference next week to address the issue.
For now, however, Liek Hou and his fellow Paralympic stars remain in limbo, waiting for a promise yet to be honoured. — September 12, 2025