Malaysia’s ex-squash star Nafiizwan Adnan has turned his attentions to helping struggling ex-national athletes to make a living after the former World No.26 hung up his racket in 2019.
Adnan, known as ‘The Komodo’ in his playing days, was one of Malaysia’s greatest ever male players and became the first Malaysian man ever to win a Commonwealth Games individual medal when he took bronze at the 2018 Games on Australia’s Gold Coast.
And now the 34-year-old is working on a new project which will see him help former athletes gain employment with his new startup, Fit4P.
Speaking to Kng Zheng Guan at the New Straits Times, Kuala Terengganu-born Adnan said: “Retiring from squash is not the end of the story for me as I [would] certainly love to be a coach some day and give back what I learned to the future generations.
“But before that, there is a project that I am working on and it is something that I feel has more priority.
“In fact, right now I am running a startup called ‘Fit4P’ with a few others that is aimed to help ex-athletes make a living.
“Essentially, it is a fitness training programme that is brought to the digital platform and we look to provide a platform for ex-athletes to be trainers on a flexible basis whilst also allowing them to share their knowledge and experience.
“We are really trying to reach out to ex-athletes who are struggling after retirement and we know there are a lot of them out there.”
Adnan, who welcomed a baby boy, Arman Nafiizwan, into the world last month, says that a lack of education for athletes during their playing careers can often result in a struggle to adapt from life after their professional careers.
“I strongly believe education is very important for every athlete, and if they have a chance to study at the same time that they are an active athlete, then they should definitely do it,” he said.
“I think a lot of athletes struggle post-retirement because they lack the awareness and some sort of preparation prior to retiring.”