[UPDATED] Paralympics committee retains Ziyad’s disqualification as he says ‘sorry’ to all M’sians

KUALA LUMPUR – The decision to withdraw national para-athlete Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli’s gold medal for the Tokyo Paralympic Games men’s F20 shot put gold stands.

In a tweet by Team Malaysia, the country’s counter-protest has been rejected and the national para-athlete remains disqualified.

“This is not the decision we wanted but we hope Ziyad stays strong. Whatever happens, Ziyad is still a champion in the hearts of Malaysians.”

Keputusan penarikan semula Emas ? Ziyad kekal & rayuan kita ditolak. ? Keputusan yang bukan diinginkan tapi harap Ziyad kuat. Walau apa pun terjadi, Ziyad tetap JUARA di hati rakyat #MAS! ? #Athletics #Paralympics #Tokyo2020 #KamiLuarBiasa #unifiedMalaysians #DemiMalaysia https://t.co/498UFLT9ja

— Team Malaysia (@TeamMsia) September 1, 2021

The World Para Athletics also rejected appeals from Australia and Ecuador.

In a statement issued by the sporting body, it said that the decision was based on World Para Athletics Rule 5.5 on “Failure to Report to the Call Room”.

“(This states that) in case athletes are not present in the call room at the relevant time as published in the call room schedule, they will be shown in the results as DNS (did not start).

“In accordance with this rule, the athletes were allowed to compete under protest while the referee considered all the evidence as to why the athletes were late to the call room. Having considered the evidence, the referee determined that there was no justifiable reason for the athletes’ failure to report to the call room on time.

“The athletes appealed this decision to the jury of appeal, who gave the teams the opportunity to present all the relevant information before making its final decision. The jury of appeal upheld the referee’s decision and confirmed the athletes’ results as DNS.”

Meanwhile, Ziyad had earlier this morning issued an apology.

“I apologise to all Malaysians. Thank you for your support,” he said briefly on his official Facebook page.

Ziyad last night broke the world record in the F20 category shot put final with a throw of 17.94m in his third attempt, contributing the second gold medal for Malaysia in this year’s Tokyo Paralympics Games.

However, his victory was disqualified after a protest was lodged by the Ukrainian camp, which claimed that Ziyad was late to enter the roll call area, allowing their athlete to win gold in the event. 

After the Malaysian delegation filed a protest, including CCTV evidence in the call room and outside it, the matter will be raised at a chef de mission meeting this morning. 

While netizens fume over the incident, Ukraine ambassador to Malaysia Olexander Nechytaylo raised some questions over the Games’ organising committee’s “slack attitude”.

“There are some fair questions to the organising committee, whose slack attitude created the grounds for the controversy in the first place. These questions have to be addressed in a swift and transparent manner to preserve the Olympic spirit of the Games,” he posted on Facebook.

“Alongside many Malaysian friends, I am closely following Tokyo 2020: The Paralympics, celebrating the victory of every para-athlete and saluting their unbreakable will and determination.

“I congratulate Ziyad Zolkefli with the remarkable performance, breaking the world record in shot put F20. He will indeed remain a true champion in the hearts of many, not just Malaysians.” – The Vibes, September 1, 2021