PETALING JAYA, April 15 (Bernama) -- "It's difficult to quantify his contributions and services to the country's sporting arena,” said former National Sports Institute chief executive officer Datuk Dr Ramlan Abd Aziz following the passing of former National Sports Council director-general Datuk Mazlan Ahmad yesterday.
Dr Ramlan, who succeeded Mazlan as NSC director-general in 2005, described Mazlan, who led the NSC for 12 years, as the architect of national sports development, which paved the way for the integration of sports science, besides setting a high benchmark in athlete performance management and the integrated sports administration structure under the NSC.
"His contributions and services were not limited to sports and will be widely acknowledged by his successors because we will all follow in his footsteps.
"… and we will always remember the examples he set for us,” Dr Ramlan told reporters after Mazlan was laid to rest at the Section 9 Muslim Cemetery in Kota Damansara here today.
Meanwhile, Ghazali Bujang, the Amateur Swimming Union of Malaysia (ASUM) president from 1992 to 1994, described Mazlan’s role in laying the foundation for swimming and diving development in Malaysia as a sporting legacy that deserves recognition.
"I knew him from the 60s, (we were from the) same hometown and same school in Alam Shah. When I helmed ASUM, he was the NSC director-general. I asked for his support in sports management and he gave his full backing.
"He realised the potential Malaysia had in diving compared to other events, which required physical size and strength. He (Mazlan) said diving relied more on technical skills and disciplined training,” said Ghazali.
He added that thanks to the support and development strategies pioneered by Mazlan, Malaysia began to enjoy the fruits of its labour in the 2000s, when national swimmers and divers began to shine at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.
"We never got on the podium in the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games, but from 2002 onwards, we started seeing results. For me, he was one of the key pillars who laid the foundation for the success enjoyed by aquatics today,” he said.
Earlier, Mazlan's son Saiful Ezane told Bernama that his father had been admitted to Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (PPUM) in Petaling Jaya since Friday after suffering a stroke and pneumonia. He died at around 4.20 pm. He was 75.
He described his father as a disciplined man, be it at work or home, but always loved his family.
Mazlan led NSC from 1993 to 2005 and was known as the main architect behind the success of the Jaya ’98 and Gemilang 2001 programmes, which boosted Malaysia’s achievements at the 1998 KL Commonwealth Games and the 2001 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games.
During his 12 years of service, he introduced long-term sports development policies, strengthened the national backup athlete programmes, and restructured the National Sports Institute (ISN) to enhance scientific support for elite athletes.
He also held key roles in national sports bodies, including the Malaysian National Cycling Federation and was Malaysia’s chef-de-mission for the 2001 SEA Games.
Mazlan received the National Sports Icon Award in 2022.
-- BERNAMA
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