COMPILED by RAHIMY RAHIM, TAN SIN CHOW and R. ARAVINTHAN

       JACKY Cheung (pic), who is known as Hong Kong’s God of Songs, has made a rare appearance to sing the theme song of the Tokyo Olympics Jian Chi De Yi Yi (The Meaning of Perseverance).

       Kwong Wah Yit Poh reported that Cheung, who will turn 60 this Saturday, happily said: “I feel it’s all fated, and I hope I can bring cheer to the athletes.”

       He has not made any public appearance since an online charity performance in mid-April last year.

       Many of his fans were touched upon learning of his performance of the Cantonese version of the Olympics song.

       His rendition was injected with deep emotion and energy, thanks to his vocals that have withstood the test of time.

       Cheung said the upcoming Olympics would be special as the participants would have to be mentally stronger due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

       As a tennis fan, he said he would be watching the sport besides swimming and track and field events.

       > Sin Chew Daily reported that a Malaysian durian seller has given out 150 packets of nasi lemak to fellow Malaysians who have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in Singapore.

       Li Lip Sin said the free meals were given out as a gesture of goodwill and encouragement for those who could not go back to their family in Malaysia.

       “Like any of you, I fully understand how it feels not to be able to reunite with your loved ones,” he told Channel 8 News.

       Li came to the island city-state eight years ago to work as a durian stall helper.

       He ventured out on his own in December, taking advantage of the booming online market of durian sales amid the pandemic.

       Besides giving out nasi lemak to Malaysians on June 19 and 20, Li bought 100 packets of chicken rice for cabbies in the republic on June 26.

       The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.