Koh Eng Tong (1921–2006) was a

Malaysian Malaysian may refer to: * Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia * Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia * Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regar ...

athlete, professional photographer and founder of Eng Tong System Sdn. Bhd, a supplier of professional photographic equipment and other products in Malaysia. He won the first Commonwealth Games gold medal for

Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...

and was instrumental in bringing Malaysian sports to world prominence.

British Empire and the Commonwealth Games

In 1950, Koh Eng Tong won Malaya's first Gold Medal at the

1950 British Empire Games The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The main venue was ...

in Weightlifting (featherweight) held in Auckland, New Zealand. At these games he lifted 310.5 kg (684.5 lbs) to win the featherweight Gold. Although at the time, Malaya was not yet an independent country, the British Government in Malaya allowed an organised a team of four weightlifters from Malaya to participate for the first time in the Games under the Union Jack. The 1950 games was also the first occasion weightlifting was introduced. Due to the absence of a sports organisation, the weightlifters had to pay their own expenses to participate at the games. All four lifters medaled, bringing back 2 gold, 1 silver, and 1 bronze. In 1951, he was rated one of the top ten Featherweight Lifters in the World. In 1954, due to lack of financial support, Malaya could not participate in the

1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fi ...

held in Vancouver, and Koh was not given an opportunity to defend his title, which might have resulted in a repeat victory. The 1954 winning weight in the featherweight category was 690 lbs, 5 lbs more than the total achieved by Koh Eng Tong in 1950.

Olympic games

Malaya was officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1954. Mr. Koh was among a contingent of 33 athletes sent by the

Federation of Malaya Olympic Council Olympic Council of Malaysia, or commonly OCM or MOM, ( ms, Majlis Olimpik Malaysia, IOC code: MAS) is the National Olympic Committee representing Malaysia. It is also the body responsible for Malaysia's representation at the Commonwealth Games. H ...

to participate in the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi ...

in Melbourne. Although 6 years removed from his gold medal performance at the British Empire games. Mr. Koh represented Malaya in the featherweight weightlifting category. It was the first of two Olympic appearance by the nation under the Malaya name. He lifted 285 kg (628 lbs), well off his personal best during his prime and finish in 17th place.

Hall of Fame

In 1994, Eng Tong was recognised by the Olympic Council of Malaysia and inducted to the Hall of Fame. Mr. Koh presented to Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) with a classic photo which he took in the

in Melbourne.

1998 Commonwealth Games

When Kuala Lumpur hosted the

1998 Commonwealth Games The 1998 Commonwealth Games ''(Malay: Sukan Komanwel 1998)'', officially known as the XVI Commonwealth Games ''(Malay: Sukan Komanwel ke-16)'', was a multi-sport event held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This edition is marked by several unprecedent ...

Eng Tong was honoured by becoming the Queen's Baton Relay Final Runner for these games, who at 77 handed the baton which contained the Queen's message to Prince Edward, the Queen's representative and Commonwealth Games Federation president. The games were the first hosted by an Asian country and for the first time in the history of the games that all 70 Commonwealth countries took part.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Koh, Eng Tong 1921 births 2006 deaths Malaysian people of Chinese descent Malaysian male weightlifters Weightlifters at the 1950 British Empire Games Weightlifters at the 1956 Summer Olympics Olympic weightlifters of Malaya Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Malaya 20th-century Malaysian businesspeople Malaysian photographers Commonwealth Games medallists in weightlifting 20th-century Malaysian people 21st-century Malaysian people