‘Iron Man’ squashes fake news about being abandoned

GEORGE TOWN: ‘Iron Man’ is not staying in an old folk’s home.

After eight years of living happily with his son in Ayer Itam, he has moved to a traditional healing centre for his diabetes since three months ago.

The trouble for former national football star V. Krishnasamy was fake news recently floating around that he was “abandoned in an old folk’s home”.

“A friend from Brunei called me about it. I was surprised. No one abandoned me. I spend my days relaxing. It’s nice here,” he said with a smile at the Penang Thiru Arut Prakasa Vallalar Devotees Association’s traditional healing centre in Batu Maung yesterday.

Now 70, Krishnasamy was called ‘Iron Man’ back in the day because he was always eager to get back in the game even after an injury.

He was in the national football team at the Olympic games in Munich in 1972, and again in 1974 when the team made it to the qualifying round in Seoul.

He now lives on a modest monthly pension after retiring at 58 as a sergeant in Penang state prison.

The fib about him being abandoned did do one good thing.

His friends went looking for him at the healing centre to make sure he was all right.

“I felt so touched that friends from the good old days came to see me even after all these years,” Krishnasamy said.

Representatives from the National Athletes Welfare Foundation (Yakeb) dropped by yesterday.

Among them were former national athletes Datuk Mohamad Bakar, C. Nadarajan, Datuk Shukor Salleh, Johari Maina and Datuk M. Rajamani.

Yakeb general manager Zuhairi Abdul Manaf said Krishnasamy is an active member of the foundation and they were shocked to hear the rumours about him.

“Don’t simply forward news that can have negative implications for people and their families,” he said after giving Krishnasamy a goodwill aid of RM500.

He said he would check if Krishnasamy could benefit from Yakeb’s medical treatment benefits.

Zuhairi urged former national sports people to be members of Yakeb to enjoy such benefits.

Visit www.yakeb.org.my or call 03-20924841/4844.