Canagasabai Kunalan (born 23 October 1942), known as C. Kunalan, is a retired

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

an sprinter,

relay A relay Electromechanical relay schematic showing a control coil, four pairs of normally open and one pair of normally closed contacts An automotive-style miniature relay with the dust cover taken off A relay is an electrically operated switch ...

runner Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

, former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

and educator, widely regarded as one of Singapore's greatest ever athletes. Named Sportsman of the Year in both 1968 and 1969, his feat of 10.38 seconds in the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

was a national record that stood for 33 years.

Career

Runner

Kunalan first came into running in 1963, at the age of 20. Formerly a football player, Kunalan switched to running when his PE teacher commended him for his fast-moving legs after noticing him running while chasing the ball. He participated in the 1964 Summer Olympics as part of the Malaysian 4 × 100 m relay team with Malaysian sprint legend

Mani Jegathesan Jegathesan Manikavasagam (born 2 November 1943), is often referred to as the ''Flying Doctor of Malaysia'' for his athletic achievements in Asia, despite being firstly a medical student then a doctor. He was an icon in the 1960s, regarded as th ...

, and subsequently represented Singapore after it left the federation. Kunalan has participated in two

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

( Tokyo, 1964 and Mexico City, 1968) and has earned five Asian Games and fifteen Southeast Asian Peninsular Games medals. He had to retire in 1979 due to a heel injury.

Educator

C Kunalan taught six years in Tiong Bahru Primary School and thirteen years in Dunearn Secondary Technical School before joining the

National Institute of Education The National Institute of Education (NIE) is an autonomous institute of Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore. Ranked 12th in the world and 2nd in Asia by the QS World University Rankings in the subject of Education in 2015, the ...

in 1980. Kunalan became an assistant professor there. He specialised in functional anatomy and exercise

physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

, and conducted practical classes in fitness and conditioning. Kunalan left the institute in 2010. He was awarded the

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: * Meritorious Civilian Service Award *Meritorious Service Me ...

in 2015 as part of the National Day Awards.

Singapore Athletic Association

He also serves as Vice Principal (Training and Selection) with the Singapore Athletic Association.

SYOGOC

Kunalan was one of the 23 members of the

Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee The Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (SYOGOC) is the organisation in charge of organising the inaugural 2010 Youth Olympic Games. A selection process to determine the members of the games' organising committee commenced soon aft ...

(SYOGOC).

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kunalan, C 1942 births Living people Singaporean male sprinters Olympic athletes of Singapore Olympic athletes of Malaysia Singaporean people of Tamil descent Singaporean people of Indian descent Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games competitors for Singapore Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games People from Singapore Asian Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 Asian Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1970 Asian Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1974 Asian Games Asian Games silver medalists for Singapore Asian Games bronze medalists for Singapore Southeast Asian Games medalists in athletics Southeast Asian Games silver medalists for Singapore Southeast Asian Games bronze medalists for Singapore Recipients of the Pingat Jasa Gemilang Medalists at the 1966 Asian Games Medalists at the 1970 Asian Games Medalists at the 1974 Asian Games Competitors at the 1977 Southeast Asian Games