Bonnie Bunyau anak Gustin (born 3 June 1999) is a Malaysian

powerlifter Powerlifting is a strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athlete attempting a maximal weight single-lift effor ...

. He won Malaysia's first ever gold medal in the sport in the men's 72 kg event at the

2020 Summer Paralympics The , branded as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, was an international multi-sport parasports event held from 24 August to 5 September 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. They were the 16th Summer Paralympic Games as organized by the International Paralym ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, breaking the Paralympic record in the process.

Early and personal life

Bonnie hails from Serian as well as Betong divisions, Sarawak and he is of mixed

Bidayuh Bidayuh is the collective name for several indigenous groups found in southern Sarawak, Malaysia and northern West Kalimantan, Indonesia, on the island of Borneo, which are broadly similar in language and culture (see also #Language issues, is ...

Iban IBAN or Iban or Ibán may refer to: Banking * International Bank Account Number Ethnology * Iban culture * Iban language * Iban people Given name Cycling * Iban Iriondo (born 1984) * Iban Mayo (born 1977) * Iban Mayoz (born 1981) Football * ...

ancestry, two main

Bumiputera Bumiputera or Bumiputra, which is a Malay word, comes from the Sanskrit word ''Bhumiputra'' which may be transliterated as "son of earth" or "son of the soil" (Bhūmi; भूमि = earth; putra = son). It has different definitions in Brunei and Ma ...

native ethnic groups to the Malaysian state of Sarawak. His father, Gustin Jenang competed in Para powerlifting at the 2010 World Championships in Kuala Lumpur. while his older brother, Bryan Junancey Gustin has also participated in the sport at international level. Bonnie took up the sport at age 15.

Career

He competed at the

2018 Commonwealth Games The 2018 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXI Commonwealth Games and also known as Gold Coast 2018, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth that were held on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, bet ...

where he came 4th in the

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight boxe ...

event. In 2020 Tokyo Paralympics Games, Bonnie was chosen as the Malaysian flag bearer at the

opening ceremony An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event.

. He then set a new Paralympic record of 228 kg and earned Malaysia's first gold medal of the Paralympics Games in powerlifting. A few months later, he won the gold medal in his event at the

2021 World Para Powerlifting Championships The 2021 World Para Powerlifting Championships was a powerlifting competition for athletes with a disability. It was held in Tbilisi, Georgia (country), Georgia from 27 November to 5 December. It was previously scheduled to be held in Batumi, Geor ...

held in Tbilisi, Georgia. He also set a new world record of 230 kg in the men's 72 kg event at the 2021 World Para Powerlifting World Cup in Dubai. In 2022, he won the gold in the Men's Lightweight powerlifting event at the

Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations that took place in Birmingham, England bet ...

References

External links

* Paralympic powerlifters for Malaysia Paralympic gold medalists for Malaysia Living people 1999 births Sportspeople from Sarawak Malaysian powerlifters Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Iban people Malaysian Christians Bidayuh people Paralympic medalists in powerlifting Powerlifters at the 2020 Summer Paralympics 21st-century Malaysian people Powerlifters at the 2022 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Malaysia Powerlifters at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games medallists in powerlifting Medallists at the 2022 Commonwealth Games Medalists at the 2018 Asian Para Games Medalists at the 2022 Asian Para Games {{Paralympic-medalist-stub