Hall of Fame

Daud Ibrahim

Category: Athlete
Sport: Cycling
Year Inducted: 2004

An iconic figure like no other, this sports personality is a force to be reckoned with in the cycling arena. With an undaunted fortitude to win, he pedalled his way through a gold medal in the competitive 800m mass start at the competitive Singapore Sports Carnival in 1977, one of the most memorable achievements celebrated by Malaysians everywhere.

Born in a quaint village of Parit Jambi in Batu Pahat, Johor Darul Takzim in 1947, cycling has always been his utmost passion. Then, his most prized possession was an archaic Cinelly bike, a cast off by the Japanese; of which it is one of the many things that were being replaced by state-of-the-art machinery as accord to modernization of the era. Maybe he is destined to do great things in life, that old junk of a Cinelly bike reached the finish ribbon in the 1600 mass start event, sending shock waves everywhere, signalling his arrival into the cycling arena.

Back then, the lack of conducive sporting equipments and space for training does not hinder Daud from training even harder. In fact, he was quite prepared for any challenges coming his way. Sponsorships and money was non-existent back in the days, so he had to depend on passing lorries to hitch a ride to reach his race venues. Drawing from experience, he gauged on the fact that there was no one superior rider and engaged in a cat-and-mouse game before zeroing in to win the meet. Whatever he lacked in, he improved it immensely through self-discipline and determination. And he was consistently on point. Garlanded on his neck was a bronze medal in the 1000m individual time trial.

With an array of accolades to his name, it is only justified that this former Customs officer was chosen as the Sportsman of the Year in 1971 (he lost the award the year before to his friend and teammate, Ng Joo Ngan), and coupled with the fact that he was ranked as the top rider in Asia for his gold medal earned in the 10,000m mass start and a bronze in the 1000m individual time trial in October the same year. It was indeed a productive sports outing to his career and resume.

Upon his many accolades was his quadruple wins at the SEA Games as well as heading the team not only as a Captain but as the Coach as well. He first won the 1000m individual time trial in 1:20.02s and later in the 1600m team time trial partnering with Fadzil Ibrahim, Rahim Baharuddin and Kamarudeen Ali. Daud paved his way to win the 10,000m mass start with a time of 17:25.88s and capped a fine outing with a fourth gold in the 4000m individual pursuit. There could be a possible gold to add to his name, but he skidded and crashed in the final lap when he was well in the lead, nonetheless, he took home silver in the 200km road race.

It was such a loss to the Malaysian sports industry when Daud announced his untimely departure from the world of cycling. He was quoted as saying that at 27 year old, he was already passed his prime to be still engaging in such youthful sport. He was known to everyone around him as being a vocal individual and never shies away from speaking his mind in order to be translucent in making Malaysia the team of force to be reckoned with. Happily married and a proud father, he is currently coaching our National Cycling squad.

Achievements:
• Sportsman of the Year, 1971
• Top Rider, ranked by Asian Cycling Championships, 1971
• Coach, Malaysian National Squad – Cycling

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