KUALA LUMPUR: Former national women's sprinter Anita Ali died at the University of Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) here yesterday. She was 59.
The news of the passing of the athlete, who had competed in the SEA Games in the 80s, was shared by the National Athletes' Welfare Foundation (YAKEB) chairman Datuk Noorul Ariffin Abdul Majeed.
He said Anita was pronounced dead at 7.15pm yesterday due to breast cancer she had previously, which spread to her liver and spine.
"Last December, she was admitted to the UMMC and YAKEB took her to a private hospital for a PET (Positron Emission Tomography) scan, where it was found that her condition was worsening,
"She fought hard against cancer but died yesterday on her birthday," he said.
Noorul Ariffin said Anita's death, who had participated in the 1990 Asian Games in China, was a great loss to the country.
He said Anita, who was a YAKED member, gave a lot of advice to young athletes to continue making the country proud.
At the 1989 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, Anita, who was 21 at the time, broke the national record for the 4x100 metres relay in 45.37 seconds with her partner G. Shanti, Sajaratuldur Hamzah, and Datuk Mumtaz Jaafar. -- Bernama
