When athletes bridge the divide between sports and politics

Former world number one shuttler Lee Chong Wei, hailed as Malaysia's most successful athlete in the sport, was seen as a legend on court, winning countless matches as well as a spot in the Badminton World Federation's Hall of Fame earlier this year. 

In 2019, though, he made waves off-court as well, over a Facebook post urging unity among Malaysians amid the debate over the introduction of khat – Malay-Arabic calligraphy – as a compulsory subject in schools. 

"We Malaysians hang out together, dine together, and take care of each other regardless of race.

"We cheer for our country, Malaysia. Will we stop all of this over a random voice from a place we don't even know?" he wrote in the post which garnered over 300,000 likes and hundreds of thousands of shares.

Lee's post was one example of how athletes, normally seen as divorced from politics, can affect sentiments on a national scale. 

Speaking to MalaysiaNow, political analyst Mazlan Ali said athletes play a significant role in various fields, including political issues.

Not only do athletes represent the country, they are also seen as true national heroes for bringing pride and honour to the nation on the international stage, the senior lecturer at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia said.

He cited Lee's victories as celebrated by all Malaysians, regardless of age, religion, or ethnicity.

"So when these athletes start voicing their opinions on politicians, the people will certainly respond because sometimes the negative perception of the politicians in question triggers an overwhelming reaction," he said. 

Meanwhile, chief researcher at O2 Research Malaysia, Anis Anwar Suhaimi, said athletes shoulder a heavy responsibility, which often causes them to distance themselves from politics. 

But she, too, said sports play a role in uniting Malaysians across the political divide. 

Since athletes represent the country in regional or global championships, she said, their political opinions can invite discomfort from the public who think they should focus on their responsibilities instead of engaging in politics.

However, she added that sports achievements are associated with the country's reputation and are inevitably entwined with political sentiments as people pay attention to the sports policies under the government's administration, whether or not they affect athletes.

"In this situation, athletes have the space to voice out and criticise the country's sports policies as well as the decisions taken by the youth and sports ministry and its minister.

"Criticism from athletes who have achieved excellence on the world stage and who have a large number of fans has an impact on the public's perception of the ministry's competence," she said.

Former youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, for example, was criticised by some athletes over his policies and decisions which they said were unfavourable to their welfare. 

National discus thrower Muhammad Irfan Shamsuddin, for one, took Syed Saddiq to task over the ministry's decision to disband the Podium Programme and terminate the contract of his personal trainer, Frantisek Petrovic.

Irfan, who clinched a silver medal at the 2017 SEA Games under the guidance of the Slovakia coach, sparked a debate with his social media post, leading to condemnation of the ministry and calls for Syed Saddiq to provide an explanation.

Anis said that athletes criticise the minister in charge and not the government as a whole. 

However, if athletes receive unfair treatment or become entangled in matters that touch on race and religion, such as the case with national women's hockey player Hanis Nadiah Onn or former Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) reserve player Bong Guang Yik, the situation would have a greater impact as it goes beyond the realm of sports, and people would evaluate how the minister handles such issues without bias, she said. 

In February, Hanis sparked a flurry of outrage for making a racial slur about an AR Rahman concert, and was suspended from representing the country in the international arena.

In the same month, Bong stirred controversy for uttering racist remarks about the BAM management, although he later apologised. 

When asked whether sports are linked with politics, Mazlan said yes.

"One thing that the people don't tolerate is politicians taking advantage of sports for personal gains," he said, noting how politicians compete for top positions within sports associations and organisations.

"It would appear as if these politicians are only interested in glory and power, but it's the athletes who truly bring glory to the country by working hard on and off the field," he said.

Mazlan also said that people have started feeling uncomfortable about the intersection of sports and politics, adding that athletes sometimes use sports as a platform to influence and raise awareness on various topics, including politics.

"They have the ability to gain people's trust, especially that of fence-sitters.

"People trust athletes more than politicians," he added.