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PETALING JAYA: Reezal Merican Minister of Youth and Sports Naina Merican has stepped in to offer assistance to nine-year-old figure skater C Sree Abiraame as she tries to compete in the highest stage, the Winter Olympics.
FMT had reported how Sree’s father, B Chendren Balakrishnan, had to sell a house, a car, and dip into the savings from his Employee Provident Fund to help finance his daughter’s training in Riga, Latvia, with his mother, Shyamala Ramachandran.
Reezal praised Sree for her tenacity in pursuing her dreams and the achievements she has made along the way, including winning four golds and one silver at the fifth international skating championships in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.
“I will direct the National Sports Council (MSN) and the Malaysian National Sports Institute (ISN) to immediately discuss and explore the types of support and assistance we can provide to her and to the sports of ice skating and figure skating in general.
“And also, the participation of national / state associations and local academies / training centers, which have been the backbone of the development of the sport,” he said recently in a Facebook post.
Sree is currently training at the International Academy of Figure Skating in Riga, and she is staying with her mother despite the Covid-19 pandemic.
Chendren, an engineer with his own consulting firm, has had to dig into his pockets to keep his daughter on track, with his own business suffering.
He got said FMT that he would try as hard as he can to continue funding Sree’s training, but regretted that his funds will run out for next year.
“I really hope the sports ministry or someone can help. They don’t have to fully sponsor it. I can still get some money every year, but it’s expensive, ”he had said.
The family yesterday launched a crowdfunding initiative to keep it in training through the Sree Abiraame Foundation. It was released on his birthday during a Zoom session.
All sponsorships or donations can be channeled to the foundation’s CIMB bank account at 80-1046165-0.
