Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli

In this Malay name, there is no surname or family name. The name Zolkefli is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by their given name, Muhammad Ziyad.

Muhammad Ziyad bin Zolkefli KMN (born 15 March 1990) is a Malaysian Paralympic athlete who competes in T20 classification shot put events.^[2] He has represented Malaysia in multiple Paralympics, World Championships and regional games, previously holding the world record in his division.^[3]

Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli

KMN SIS

Muhammad Ziyad in 2016
Personal information
Birth name	Muhammad Ziyad bin Zolkefli
Nickname	Ziyad
Nationality	Malaysian
Born	(1990-03-15) 15 March 1990 (age 34) Gombak, Selangor
Height	184 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Sport
Country	Malaysia
Sport	Track and field
Disability class	(F20)
Event	Shot put
Club	Paralympic Club Kuala Lumpur
Coached by	Mohd Faizol Harun (club)
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Malaysia Southeast Asian Games 2019 Philippines Shot put 2017 Kuala Lumpur Shot put 2021 Hanoi Shot put 2023 Phnom Penh Shot put Paralympic athletics Representing  Malaysia Paralympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro Shot put – F20 2024 Paris Shot put – F20 2012 London Shot put – F20 World Championships 2013 Lyon Shot put – F20 2017 London Shot put – F20 2024 Kobe Shot put – F20 2019 Dubai Shot put – F20 2023 Paris Shot put – F20 2015 Doha Shot put – F20 Asian Para Games 2014 Incheon Shot put – F20 2018 Jakarta Shot put – F20 2022 Hangzhou Shot put – F20 ASEAN Para Games 2014 Naypyidaw Shot put – F20[1] 2015 Singapore Shot put – F20 2017 Kuala Lumpur Shot put – F20 2022 Surakarta Shot put – F20

Early life

Born in Selangor, Muhammad Ziyad was diagnosed with an intellectual impairment in preschool. He attended Sekolah Menengah Teknik Tanah Merah in Kelantan, and was involved in school sports. Before joining the Malaysian National Sports Council, he sold kueh teow on Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman in Kuala Lumpur. He is the eldest of four siblings.^[4]

Athletics career

Muhammad Ziyad first came to prominence at the 2012 London Paralympic Games, winning the bronze medal with a throw of 15.21m in the men's F20 shot put event.^[5] He won Malaysia's only gold medal at the 2013 World Para Athletics Championships in Lyon, and was recognised for his achievements as the National Paralympian Sportsman of the Year at the Anugerah Sukan Negara.^[6]

At the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games, Muhammad Ziyad again represented Malaysia and won the gold medal in the shot put event, setting a new world record of 16.84m. At the world championships in London the following year, he surpassed himself to again set the world record, throwing a distance of 17.29m.^[7]

He won silver at the 2024 Paralympic held in Paris with a record of 17.18m.^[8]

2020 Tokyo Summer Paralympic Games

Main article: Malaysia at the 2020 Summer Paralympics

At the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, Muhammad Ziyad represented Malaysia and won the gold medal in the shot put event, again breaking the world record with a 17.94 m throw during his third round in the final.^[9] He had initially arrived at the call room three minutes past his allocated time, but was allowed to compete. However, following an appeal from the Ukrainian team, both he and two other competitors were disqualified, invalidating the record. The ruling was upheld despite the athletes arguing that they did not recognise the relevant announcement as it was in a language they did not understand.^[10] Following his disqualification, Ukraine's Maksym Koval was awarded the gold medal and the world record.^[11] The decision was met with outcry, particularly from Malaysians. The hashtag #Ziyad trended on Twitter, with anger directed towards Koval and the IPC.^[12][13]

Honours

Honours of Malaysia

•  Malaysia :
  • Officer of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (KMN) (2017)^[14][15]
•  Selangor :
  • Companion of the Order of Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah (SIS) (2012)^[16]

See also

• List of IPC world records in athletics