Timmy Tan Chye Chern or widely known as Timmy is Malaysia national bowler who has made Malaysian proud with his ability in churning out an immensely successful year in 2019.
Timmy, who is 25 years represented Malaysia at the Asian Championships in Kuwait and SEA Games in Philippines last year.
And he managed to bring home 4 gold medals, 2 from each event.
It was back to back events which were held in end of October and early December 2019.
The bowler who was delighted at ending his long wait for another title admitted that it wasn’t an easy journey for him to achieve 4 gold medals in 2019. But it was all worth it in the end and that was by far the best moment in his life as a national bowler.
“I didn’t expect to win 4 gold medals last year because in 2018, I was in slump and I did very badly in all tournaments that I competed,” said Timmy.
“I actually doubted myself and had a thought of quitting but after talking to my parents, I realised that I had to work on my weaknesses and prove my critics wrong.”
Being the top ranked Asian bowler, Timmy didn’t take his ranking for granted as he knows that he is being surrounded by extremely talented bowlers and he needs to stay focused to maintain his success.
“I would say the Korean bowlers are my strongest rival, but they are also my good friends. We usually exchange knowledge and tips every time we meet as we are more to a friendly rival” added the Selangor born bowler.
“In bowling, both physical conditioning and skills play vital role and both actually complement one another. As bowler I need to always be aware of both factors for every tournament.”
Timmy who will be turning 26 in September 2020 actually got involved in sport by playing volleyball when he was just a young boy following the footsteps of his father who was once a volleyball player. After that, he decided to play badminton and he was actually very active in badminton industry.
However, the luck wasn’t on his side, Timmy injured both of his knees and had to stop taking up badminton as his profession.
After a year of recovery, Timmy’s passion in sport continues and he started to see his better future in bowling. His enthusiasm paid off when he became one of the national bowlers and achieved amazing
“To be honest, when I first started bowling, I didn’t see all these coming, it is really never in my plan. But I’m very grateful for what I have achieved and where I’m standing right now,” said the bowling master.
Earning his place in the spotlight, Timmy who is known as a very friendly and down to earth bowler said that he feels pressure for all events either singles, doubles or team and it nerves wrecking for him even if he is not the one on the lane when it comes to bowling.
“In any event, we are actually playing and supporting each other. We want everyone to win because in the end what important is, Malaysia wins.”
The bowler who holds on tight to his life philosophy, “never give up” takes Tiger Woods as his idol in sport because Timmy believes that if the amazing golfer had once gave up on golf, he won’t be the “Tiger Woods”, and Timmy said that motivated him when forced to give up Badminton.
Timmy who is also currently busy running his beauty care business believes that as an athlete, he needs to have a backup plan as life is full of rises and falls.
Hence, the bowler is steadily balancing both his careers as national bowler and businessman.
|
TIMMY TAN CHYE CHERN | |
| Nationality | Malaysian |
| Born | 11 September 1994 (age 26) |
| Selangor, Malaysia | |
| Height | 1.76m |
| Plays | Right handed |
| Asian ranking | 1 (August 2020) |
|
MEDAL RECORD | ||
|
Southeast Asian Games | ||
| Philippines 2019 | Singles | Gold |
| Philippines 2019 | Team | Gold |
| Singapore 2015 | Team | Gold |
| Singapore 2015 | Men’s Trios | Gold |
| Singapore 2015 | Men’s Doubles | Bronze |
|
Asian Championships | ||
| Kuwait, 2019 | Singles | Gold |
| Kuwait, 2019 | All-events | Gold |
| Hong Kong, 2016 | Singles | Gold |
| Hong Kong, 2016 | Men’s Doubles | Silver |
| Hong Kong, 2016 | Team | Bronze |
| Thailand, 2015 | Team | Silver |
| Thailand, 2015 | Men’s Trios | Bronze |
|
Asian Games | ||
| Jakarta, 2018 | Men’s Trios | Silver |
| Incheon, 2014 | Men’s Trios | Silver |
| Incheon, 2014 | Team | Silver |
