SAM-100PLUS 2022 Best Athlete Award a tough call to make with presence of world champs

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PETALING JAYA: The fight for the title of Athlete of the Year at the Sports Writers Association of Malaysia (SAM) 100PLUS Awards 2022 sees an interesting competition as it brings together a line-up of world champions who made the country proud on the international stage last year.

Heading the list of five candidates for the title are Sportsmen of the Year, namely the country’s leading men’s badminton doubles pair Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik, who are also the gold medal winners of the 2022 World Badminton Championships.

The world number four pair will be challenged by snooker champion Lim Kok Leong who emerged as world champion at the World Amateur Snooker Championship and bodybuilder Datuk Mohd Syarul Azman Mahen Abdullah who topped the World Bodybuilding and Physique Sports Championships for the fifth time.

Completing the list are weightlifter Muhammad Aniq Kasdan and the winner of two gold medals at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, gymnast Ng Joe Ee, who is also the 2022 Sportswoman of the Year.

At the same time, the competition for the title of Best Para Athlete 2022 is also in the spotlight as it is lined up with powerlifting champion Bonnie Bunyau Gustin, badminton world champion Cheah Liek Hou, Nani Shahiera Zawawi (athletics) and two swimmers Brenda Anellia Larry and Carmen Lim.

Both the 2022 Best Athlete and Best Para Athlete winners will each receive a cash prize of RM10,000 along with a trophy.

Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh is expected to inaugurate the SAM-100PLUS Awards 2022 scheduled to take place on Aug 29 at a hotel here.

In addition to recognising outstanding athletes who made Malaysia famous throughout last year, also to be celebrated at the awards ceremony are sports journalists who have the opportunity to take home total cash prizes of more than RM50,000.

The awards are divided into six categories namely Best News Report (Print Media), Best News Report (Electronic Media), Best News Commentary (Print Media), Best News Commentary (Electronic Media), Best Special Report (Open) and Best Sports Photography.

The overall best winner for the sports journalism category will be crowned the recipient of the Siebel Award with a cash prize of RM RM7,000 and a trophy.

SAM president, Norismadi Abdul Manap said its leadership is always looking for different approaches to enliven the ceremony in addition to recognising sports media practitioners in Malaysia.

“For this edition, we are introducing the Most Popular Commentator Award with six candidates identified as a result of discussions with relevant parties and the winner will be determined through public voting. The voting process can be done through social media starting today,” he said at a press conference on the awards ceremony here, today.

Following is the list of awards at the SAM-100PLUS Awards 2022 ceremony:

*Journalism Awards*: