KUALA-LUMPUR, Sept 29 — Malaysian athletes who become pregnant can now continue training and competing as long as they are medically certified fit to do so, Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh announced today.
She said the government has reviewed and abolished the previous unfair practice where pregnant athletes were automatically removed from training programmes and had their employment terminated.
Yeoh said the new policy recognises that different sports carry different physical demands, making a blanket ban unnecessary.
“You cannot treat 100m athletics the same as archery. If you are eight months’ pregnant, you can still practise and do archery, and you can still compete,” she said at a special plenary session at the World Social Security Forum (WSSF) 2025 here today.
“As a result, we have just facilitated the entire process, and we now just imposed on them medical assessment. As long as their doctors certify them to be fit to continue training, they can continue,” she added.
In addition to this change, Yeoh said sports in Malaysia is becoming more women-friendly with the introduction of maternity leave for athletes, another policy that did not exist previously.
She also stressed the importance of providing accessible childcare for athletes and coaches, noting that standard childcare hours often clash with the early morning training schedules common in sports.
“When you have special facilities just to care for their needs, you will find that more people will stay in the workforce,” she said.
Separately, Yeoh highlighted a new collaboration between her ministry and the Social Security Organisation (Socso) to identify potential para-athletes.
She praised Socso’s rehabilitation work and explained that individuals recovering from injuries are now given opportunities to try different para-sports, which Yeoh said could unearth potential athletes.
