KUALA LUMPUR: Teoh Seng Khoon, the last surviving member of Malaysia’s triumphant 1949 Thomas Cup team, passed away in Ipoh on Tuesday at the age of 99.
Known by the British press as “The Little Men from the Far East”, Seng Khoon and his teammates – Chan Kon Leong, Ooi Teik Hock, Law Teik Hock, Lim Kee Fong, Ong Poh Lim, Wong Peng Soon, Yeoh Teck Chye and captain Lim Chuan Geok, won Malaysia’s first Thomas Cup in December, 1949.
The team took the badminton world by storm when they won against the then badminton powerhouse, the United States, in the semi-final, before going on to beat Denmark 8-1 in the final. This was truly a remarkable achievement, considering their long journey by sea to England.
The team took over three weeks to travel by boat to London. They had the additional challenge of not being able to train throughout their sea journey. To stay fit, they followed on-deck exercise routines and played “shadow” badminton when the weather allowed it. It was of course winter in the Northern Hemisphere.
They arrived to bitterly cold winter temperatures. This in itself was a huge shock. The team had only ever experienced the tropics and heating in Alexandra Palace was virtually non-existent, given post-war austerity.
At his 90th birthday celebration, Seng Khoon recalled to his grandchildren that the greatest memories of his badminton career were “winning the Thomas Cup. The glory of representing your country and holding up the Cup to the sight of a large hero’s welcome when our ship arrived home”.
He also said: “It did not matter that we were given just £3 for our effort, as we were incredibly proud that we had just put Malaya on the badminton map, especially at a time when the second World War had just ended.”
Seng Khoon and Ooi Teik Hock also won the All-England doubles title in 1949 and they remained unbeatable as a pair.
Seng Khoon, an alumnus of ACS Ipoh, spent his early years as a journalist and later as Ipoh Bureau Chief for the “Straits Echo” and “Times of Malaya’. He married the late Foo Soon Tai and they had a son, Teoh Kah Tin, and three daughters, Teoh Seok Leng, Teoh Mei Ling and Teoh Suat Leng.
His badminton career was truly amateur, given that sponsorship and prize money were in those days, simply unheard of. Fit until the end, he was driving well into his early nineties and was a regular sight in Ipoh having his daily cup of “kopi” and noodles up until a few months ago.
