KUALA LUMPUR: The Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Hajah Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah have conveyed their condolences to the family of former Malaysia Olympics athletics coach, Suppiah Ramalingam who passed away on May 22.

       Istana Negara through a post on its official Facebook account Wednesday (May 25) stated that Their Majesties expressed sadness over Suppiah's demise and hoped that his family would be patient and remain strong despite their loss.

       "Their Majesties appreciate the late Suppiah's services, contributions and sacrifices, and regard his demise as a big loss to the field of athletics in the country," it added in the post.

       Hailing from Perak, Suppiah had trained three national athletes until they managed to compete at the Olympics and they included national track queen M. Rajamani at the 1964 edition of the Games in Tokyo.

       Suppiah himself was an athlete who won many competitions in Perak during his heyday.

       The 94-year-old Suppiah breathed his last at a physio and care facility, in Ipoh, about two weeks after suffering a stroke. – Bernama