Farewell to Krishnan – one of many gems from the Pearl of the Orient

TRIBUTES came pouring in as the nation mourns the demise of double Olympian, Datuk Krishnasamy Thambusamy, who passed away peacefully on Wednesday, at the age of 79.

He is survived by wife V. Saroja, a former sprinter and hockey player, daughter Geetha and son Ganesh.

As a sprinter during the medal-churning days of the athletics contingent in various multi-sports Games in the 1960s, Krishnasamy was known as Krishnan in the track and field circle.

In the media, his name was spelt either Tamboo or Tambu Krishnan. Or simply T. Krishnan.

Like Tan Sri Dr M. Jegathesan, Krishnan was equally at home in the century dash, 200m and the quarter mile – a race that requires endurance, speed and strength.

Certainly, the 400m race is not every sprinter’s cup of tea.

Too young to witness Krishnan in his prime, I was privileged enough to have known him as a coach in the 90s.

Krishnan, second from a family of 10, was chief coach of the Penang athletics team in Sukma 2000 that had the likes of sprinter Shamsuri Ahmad and high jumper Shabana Khanum Jalaldin.

A vice-president of the Penang Amateur Athletics Association (PAAA), Krishnan was also chief coach of the Penang team to various senior and junior athletics meets throughout the decade.

The athletics calendar was packed with Open Championships held at State level.

Kedah, Penang, Perak and Selangor were famed for their State Championships. For media personnel, it was the best occasion to gain insights from the executors and policy makers such as Tan Choo Mong of Perak, Yusof Khalid of Johor and Krishnan.

Those days the State AAAs secretaries were influential in cultivating a culture of athletics at grassroots level.

Penang’s Paul Subramaniam, S. Govindarajoo of Kedah, Melaka’s P. Rengan, Perak’s S.O. Appan, Negri Sembilan’s S. Chinnathamby, were also council members of the MAAU, now known as MAF.

Without a doubt, Krishnan was one of many gems produced by the Pearl of the Orient.

From the female category, Saik Oik Cum, Teoh Siew Yee, Harbans Kaur, V. Angamah, Zaiton Othman, Cheah Bee Tin, P. Sakthirani and Rabia Abdul Salam became the pride of the State.

Their male counterparts included Sukinder Singh, V. Sridaran, Chan Sin Long, M. Balasupramaniam, Edward Jaipal, P.L.B.S Peyadesa (now Datuk), Hassan Othman and S. Kesavan.

Upon his retirement, Krishnan remained active as a coach at the National Sports Council (NSC) Development Centre in Desa Damai, Bukit Mertajam. He nurtured the talent of SEA Games medallist, P. Yuvaraj as well as the likes of M. Sasikumar, Dinesh Kumar, Mohd Nabil, S. Deekeesegaran and Aliff Razlan.

He was also part of the national coaching set-up in the late 90s and early 2000s.

With his teaching background, motivating and nurturing were second nature to Krishnan who was honoured as Tokoh Guru Negeri Pulau Pinang (2004), Tokoh Guru Kebangsaan (2007) and Tokoh Sukan Negara (2009).

Up until recently, we exchanged messages on WhatsApp, discussing athletics in general.

Krishnan participated in four editions of the SEAP Games in 1965, 1967, 1969 and 1971 and two Asian Games – both in Bangkok in 1966 and 1970. His two Olympic appearances took place in Mexico 1968 and Munich 1972.

“Throughout my athletics career in the 1960s, a regular teammate and rival was Krishnan. All the time he was more a friend than a rival. He was always there to encourage me to go on even faster. We took great pride in finishing next to each other in Malaysian colours,” said Dr Jegathesan on the Olympic Council of Malaysia’s social media platform.

“When feeling down he was always there with a word of consolation and encouragement.

‘‘I have kept regular contact with him in recent years as I always called him when I was in Penang for my official duties at the USM. We would get together for a meal or a drink.

‘‘I will certainly miss him. Heartfelt condolences to his beloved family members.”

Krishnan, who retired as a headmaster in Prai, bagged a total of eight medals - the men’s 100m silver in the SEAP Games 1965, gold in the 4x100m relay, the bronze in the men’s 200m and the gold in 4x100m relay in Bangkok Asian Games in 1966, the 4x100m gold in the SEAP Games 1969, the bronze in the 4x400m in the 1970 Asian Games and the gold in men’s 400m and 4x400m in the 1971 SEAP Games in Kuala Lumpur.

For all his medals, Krishnan was above all, a gem of a person.