Being a para athlete in Malaysia & Indonesia
Many magical moments come from para sports, where athletes with different impairments strive for gold in their respective disciplines. What sticks out to most of us are their stories, which often fall into the inspirational category with the athletes’ disabilities in focus.
But there is so much more to celebrate about our para athletes.
National athletes such as Malaysia’s Ammar Aiman Nor Azmi and Indonesia’s Fadli Imamuddin have racked up multiple medals for their countries with their unshakable drive and resiliency. Separated by geography but connected by passion and determination, they shared with us what moves them to keep going and what shapes their goals.
A young athlete’s drive to succeed
“If anyone is looking for inspiration, don’t look for it in me,” the 24-year-old Ammar shared in an interview with TheSmartLocal Malaysia. “I’m just a regular guy. There are athletes who are much faster than me. I want to stay humble so I can focus on becoming better.”
Image credit: @ammarazmi_1 via Instagram
Ammar, the eldest son in a family of five, grew up in the small coastal town of Pontian in Johor.
As a child with an intellectual disability, he first discovered his love for running in primary school. With encouragement from his teachers, he joined his school’s track and field team, and later represented Johor at just 20 years old in the 2022 Para Sukma.
His parents had understandable worries about his sporting pursuits early on. But despite an unwavering desire to make his family happy and proud, Ammar held firm to his sporting ambitions even to this day, believing in his own potential and in what being an athlete could mean for him.
I understood why my family was worried and felt like I should find a job when I first started running professionally. I was 22, and my monthly income was low. But I wanted to prove to my parents that I could make it as an athlete, and that being an athlete could support my life.
Image adapted from: Ammar Aiman Nor Azmi
Ammar debuted as a national para sprinter in 2023, showcasing his sporting prowess at the ASEAN Para Games in Cambodia, where he secured gold as a national newcomer and clocked a fiery time of 48.42 seconds in the T20 (intellectual impairment) men’s 400m event.
At the Hangzhou Asian Para Games in October that year, he won another gold in the same event and shattered two records. His personal best of 47.60 seconds beat the previous Asian record of 47.80 seconds and a Games record of 49.32 seconds.
Image credit: Toyota Motor Asia
Ammar competed in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games – the highest level of sport for athletes with disabilities – clinched silver at the 2025 ASEAN Para Games, and became a Global Team Toyota Athlete in 2026 to help champion equal access to sports in his country.
While his debut at the Paralympics became his proudest achievement yet, he also recalls the dismay he felt from placing 4th in the T20 men’s 400m event and his determination to bring home a medal from the Paralympics.
I feel proud and moved when I get to bring home the gold medal for Malaysia and for my family. But when I couldn’t get a medal from the Paralympics, I felt sad and disappointed. My goals are to make my country and family proud, but my greatest goal is to bring home a gold medal from the Paralympics.
Beating pre-game nerves
Image credit: Toyota Motor Asia
For now, Ammar is focusing on training to improve himself. According to him, three crucial traits define a good athlete: discipline, confidence, and goal-setting.
Beyond regular training on the track, his discipline spills over to a strict sleep schedule and diet. While most of his peers are exploring the latest cafes and trending foods, he has to ensure he gets enough sleep and keeps a balanced and well-portioned diet with the help of a nutritionist.
But he’s not unlike most his age either. The young athlete builds his confidence by regularly refocusing on his goals and listening to music to find some peace of mind. His favourite pre-game music to listen to? Rock. Specifically, Linkin Park.
He has a unique pre-game routine alongside this. He thinks about how to run in the competition, picturing it like a live video in his head.
I was nervous at the Paralympics, but I had to control my nerves. At any tournament, I focus on what I want to achieve. What are my goals and strategies? After going to more competitions, I could better manage my nervousness with this mindset.
Image adapted from: @ammarazmi_1 via Instagram
With youthful excitement, Ammar also shared about the happiness he feels whenever he wins medals for Malaysia, describing this as his responsibility as an athlete. His eyes are now set on winning the gold and beating his personal best at the upcoming 2026 Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya this October.
“Right now, I’m preparing for the Asian Para Games. It’s nerve-wracking, but I can’t wait to be there,” he said. “I’d like to break my personal best, which is currently 47 seconds. I also hope to get that gold medal for my country and my family.”
A reinvention from devotion
In neighbouring Indonesia, Fadli Imamuddin is a former proficient motorcyclist who had amassed six national motorcycle titles under his belt. Just a year after a motorcycle racing accident, he was doing the seemingly impossible for someone who had just lost half of a leg: cycling.
Image credit: Fadli Imamuddin
What followed the accident at the 2015 Asian Road Racing Championship was an uphill road to recovery, which he speaks about with candidness, and a feeling of immense gratitude for being able to return as an athlete.
“After the amputation, it felt like the world had turned against me. I no longer had a whole body, and I felt ashamed,” the 42-year-old athlete shared with us. “I was ashamed of my situation, and of meeting people and seeing my friends again. I ended up isolating myself for two weeks.”
Image credit: @mfadly43 via Instagram
But an iron will and stern discipline, stemming from his fervent desire to step up to support his family and be a good parental figure, helped shape his reinvention as an athlete.
After 2 months of physical rehabilitation, the devoted and resilient father began moving around with a prosthetic leg. This adaptation phase usually takes 3–4 months. Fadli also stopped relying on crutches about 6 months into his recovery – most would take about a year or so.
From the time of the amputation to becoming an athlete again, it took me a year. I accelerated the process of achieving my goals, not just for myself, but for my family. Nothing comes to us without us working for it, and I had a family to support and responsibilities to fulfil. My children deserve an active, responsible parent, and that’s only possible if I pick myself up and become active again.
Choosing to embrace the positives
Fadli always enjoyed focusing on a single task at a time. At first, this was a double-edged sword. His dedication to motorcycle racing meant that he had achieved many successes in the sport, but once he could no longer race, he realised that he knew little about anything else.
He had to learn to reframe and embrace his linear focus as something positive – a silver lining.
Almost immediately after his recovery, Fadli returned to competing on the international stage as a para cyclist. This was just 2 years after the motorcycle racing accident.
Image credit: Toyota Motor Asia
With resolution and resiliency, Fadli debuted as a para cyclist at the 2017 Asian Para Cycling Championship, placing fourth. The athlete has now won over five silver and gold medals across four major para sports events: the ASEAN Para Games, Asian Championships, Asian Para Games, and World Abilitysports Games.
I am someone who focuses on one thing at a time. The downside to this is that when I stopped motorcycle racing, I had no experience in anything else. But there are also many benefits. Right now, with cycling, I focus entirely on my performance and dedicate all my energy and thoughts to achieving success in the sport. I choose to embrace the positives.
Image credit: @mfadly43 via Instagram
With nearly a decade of para-cycling experience under his belt, the para cyclist remains a firm believer in having a clear focus and consistency as he gives back to his community. Now mentoring the next generation of aspiring athletes with an established racing school, he encourages others to dream big and to get there with discipline.
To achieve something, the goal might not be reached in a month, two months, a year, or even two years. Consistency is what leads us to the goal we desire. There are no shortcuts to achieving something great. Like in fishing, if you want to land a big catch, you can’t use ordinary bait. The bait has to be top-notch.
Looking to an inclusive future with Toyota’s Mobility For All
Fadli’s consistent focus on his sporting dreams has opened many doors of opportunity. One of these is the chance to receive support from Toyota by becoming a Global Team Toyota Athlete under their Mobility For All vision.
Mobility For All celebrates athletes beyond medals won and records broken. It supports them by giving them the freedom to move and grow towards their goals, regardless of background. With the belief in the power of sports to build better people and communities, Toyota Asia also works with their athletes on the philanthropic Dual Hero Projects initiative to impact and empower the para sports community and beyond.
Both Fadli and Ammar are the latest athletes to join Toyota’s Global Team Toyota Athletes from Indonesia and Malaysia, coming together with five others from around Southeast Asia.
The support is meaningful for Ammar, who shared that partnerships like this, which are hard to come by, allow promising athletes in relatively non-mainstream sports to get closer to their dreams while making a positive impact in their communities.
To learn more about Toyota’s work with athletes, follow them on LinkedIn.
Cheering on our para athletes as they move their world
Para athletes like Fadli and Ammar are challenging perceptions of what people with different disabilities can achieve in sports and in their communities when limitations are removed.
And thanks to the support they’ve received, more people can finally see not just how truly inspirational, but also how aspirational these athletes are.
So let’s stand with these determined and resilient athletes as they charge forward towards their sporting goals and build up their communities.
Find out more about Toyota’s Mobility For All
This post was brought to you by Toyota Motor Asia.
Cover image adapted from: @ammarazmi_1, @mfadly43 via Instagram
Some quotes have been edited for brevity and clarity.