KUALA LUMPUR: This was a great year for Shereen Samson Vallabouy as she won bronze in the 400m in the Hangzhou Asian Games and also graduated from Winona State University in the United States.
The 25-year-old Shereen obtained a degree in recreation and tourism from Winona State University in Minnesota, US on Saturday.
The Perak born Shereen had a fantastic season as she broke three national records in the 400m outdoor (51.80) and 400m indoor (52.27) and 200m outdoor (23.33) this year.
She also won the Phnom Penh Sea Games 400m gold by clocking 52.53 in May and in the Hangzhou Asian Games she won bronze in the 400m (52.58) and 4x100m.
Her next dream is to qualify for the Paris Olympics and she needs to beat the qualifying mark of 50.95 by the end of June.
Shereen said that her parents Samson Vallabouy and Josephine Mary played a big part in her success in athletics and also in her studies.
"My desire to reach a greater height in both sports and studies is because of my parents.
"I needed a stronger training platform and thus I managed to attain entry into Winona State University (WSU) through a scholarship as a student athlete.
"It started off on a smooth footing in 2019 and the year 2023 marks the successful ending of all the struggles that I had endeavoured.
"As I recall, the past years in WSU, I endured tremendous pressure to divide between studies and rushing for training after which I would work at the gym to reduce my parents' burden, as living cost was not covered.
"Through the night, I had to make up for the assignments as well. The pandemic in 2020 and 2021 hit everyone badly including my dad's transportation business to the extent I decided to wrap up and return to Malaysia.
"I would say it was God's blessing, I did well at the NCAA D2 championship and won gold in the 400m indoor with a new record. My achievement was highlighted and it caught the eyes of billionaire Tan Seri Vincent Tan.
"My faith changed drastically when I received funding from the Better Malaysia foundation to cover my living cost. That timely kind gesture from YBhg Tan Sri Vincent Tan made a difference to my life and indeed made it easier.
"That was the turning point from which I have never looked back but focused seriously on my studies and training. I can frankly say the timely funding from Better Malaysia Foundation was what gave me the inspiration and confidence to go all the way to accomplish what I had dreamt of and to make it a reality.
"This was proven when I won a 400m gold medal at Phnom Penh Sea Games in May and two bronze medals at the Asian Games in 400m and 4x100m in October.
"As I graduate and the year 2023 comes to an end, I will be going home with lots of sweet memories from Winona State University. I am thankful to Head coach Mason Rebarchek and Winona State University for giving me an opportunity to be a Student Athlete.
"I am looking forward to 2024 with a bigger goal to qualify for next year's Paris Olympics and am thankful to the Youth and Sports Ministry and National Sports Council (MSN) for funding my training stint at Florida under Olympic coach Derrick White.
"Thank you Malaysia for all the support."
