Farah Ann

FARAH ANN

BACKGROUND

 Farah Ann was born in Subang Jaya, Selangor, on 3 May 1994. Her Malaysian father is Abdul Hadi Ahmad
and her Canadian mother is Kimberly Ann Gagnon .She is the second of three children and her sister,
Katrina Ann, is a former national synchronized swimmer.

 She took up gymnastics at age three and started to compete at the national level competition Sukma
Games. Farah Ann made her first appearance at the 2010 Games in New Delhi. In 2014, Farah Ann took up
the bronze in the floor exercise and the team event at the Artistic Celtic Cup-Commonwealth Invitational
in Perth, Scotland. Later that year, she finished in 11th place out of 24 gymnasts in the women’s individual
all-round finals at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. After the Commonwealth Games, she
competed in the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.

 In 2015, she competed at the Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games), competing in all events — bars, beam,
vaults, floor exercise, individual and team — in the preliminary round of the competition and made it to
the finals of all events. She took up her first gold medal in the team event, followed by a second in
the floor exercise. She then gained a silver medal each in both the uneven bars, and individual events. The
Malaysian gymnast won bronze medals in the vault, balance beam, as well as the uneven bars event.

 After barely missing Rio 2016, she has qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics fully by merit when she
finished 59th out of 180 gymnasts in the qualifying session of the individual all-around event at the 2019
World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Stuttgart, Germany.

UPS AND DOWNS

At 21 years old, Farah Ann Abdul Hadi is having the best time in her gymnastics career.
While many gymnasts her age are already thinking of quitting, carrying some kind of injury or have given up
hope all together, sweet Farah has blossomed in the physically demanding sport.
Her performance in the Singapore SEA Games in June probably ranks as the best ever in her 12-year stint
with the national team. She bagged two gold medals (team and floor exercise), one silver (individual all-
around) and three bronzes (balance beam, uneven bars and vault) at the Games.
Her eyes lit up as she recalled the sensational victory in the team event with Tracie Ang, Lavinia Raymund,
Nur Eli Ellina Azmi and Siti Nur Bahirah Ahmad.
“We did not keep track of the scores. When all of us had completed our routines, we just sat in a circle and
held each other’s hands. When the results were flashed on the scoreboard, we just leapt and celebrated!”
recalls Farah.
We were overjoyed. Nothing can beat the feeling of winning the team gold ... everyone deserved it.”
Farah kept the momentum going in the individual events, winning a medal in every apparatus to underline
her consistency at the highest level.
But her joy was soured when some took to the social media to criticise her over her gymnastics attire.

Fortunately for Farah, she stood resolute and won more cheers than jeers.
The support of her family, friends and fans through the social media and several dignitaries
was so overwhelming that it helped her to stay focused on her task to become a better
gymnast.
“Obviously, I was a bit upset ... I guess everyone reacts to negative criticisms. I had no control
over them ... so I just did what I knew best – stay positive. I appreciate all the support,” says
Farah, who is now devoting all her time to training as she still stands a chance to qualify for
the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
By virtue of being the top Malaysian performer at the World Championships in Glasgow in
October, she has been chosen to compete in a Test event in Rio in April.
She is one of the 40 gymnasts selected and she will have to finish among the top 24 to seal
her maiden Olympic Games ticket.
“That is my driving force ... I want to qualify for the Olympic Games ... it will be the final piece
to complete my career jigsaw,” adds Farah, who picked up the sport as a three-year-old.

Farah is also quick to thank her Russian coach, Natalia Sinkova, for her meteoric rise.
“I have been under coach Natalia for some time now and she has taught me new skills. She’s
the one who made me believe that even when I get older, I can be better,” she said.
Farah admits that it has not always been a bed of roses as there have been injuries and
disappointments along the way.
But, like they say, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. And that’s the case with Farah,
who kept picking herself up after every fall.
“I have come a long way. There have been ups and downs. I’ve always believed in myself and
kept coming back despite the hardships,” she says.
“I suffered my first big injury when I was just 11. I had a fall during a tournament and hurt my
knee. I was hospitalised and it took me a year to get back on my feet.
“In 2010, I hurt my back before the Malaysia Games (Sukma) in Malacca. It was very painful,
but I still took part. The injury was near my spine and I had to slow down after that.
“At the 2011 World Championships, I fell and fractured my shoulder ... it’s probably the worst
of all my injuries. I almost quit but, fortunately, my sister (synchronised swimmer Katrina
Ann) encouraged me to fight on.”

On hindsight, Farah says she has no regrets choosing gymnastics.
“I wouldn’t trade this sport for anything else. I love everything about it – the training and the
competitions. There have been wonderful moments ... and fun moments ... with my team-
mates. There has been drama too, though,” she chuckles.
“I remember an occasion when we were fooling around in our hotel room and I fell and my
head was caught between two beds. It was so funny. We had so much fun and laughter.”

ACHIEVEMENTS

 By 2010, she competed in her first Games at the New Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games and
then placed 11th in the all-around finals in the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

 Her career trajectory had been solidified even further when she won gold in the team’s event
and floor finals in the 2015 Southeast Asian Games, followed by a silver in the Individual Final
including bronze in vault, balance beam and uneven bars, winning a total of six medals overall.
In 2016, she won a silver medal at the World Cup in Slovenia.

 In 2019, she recorded multiple accomplishments after securing her Tokyo 2020 qualification in
the Artistic Gymnastics World Champions