Different races, same road, shared humanity

Luke Chua was already halfway along the 30km marathon when he spotted a runner struggling with a cramp.

The other participants just ran past, focused on getting to the finish line, and perhaps also hoping to better their personal times.

But Chua chose to stop and help him. He approached the runner Zahidi Zein Lazim to offer him a spray to ease the cramp and helped him stretch his muscles so he could continue the race.

For the wheelchair-bound Chua, it was not something remarkable. He did not see anything extraordinary in his action. All he saw was a fellow Malaysian who needed help.

But that simple act of kindness at the Score Marathon in Putrajaya on July 19 went viral on social media.

For 25-year-old Zahidi, Chua’s decision to help him left a deep impression.

He told FMT that the encounter with Chua showed him how sport could bring people together when someone is willing to put aside personal interests to help others.

Chua believes the roles could have easily been reversed. “Today, I may be helping someone, but on another day, I may be the one who needs help from a fellow Malaysian of a different race or background,” he told FMT.

He said the incident also reminded him that the racial tensions often amplified online do not necessarily reflect the reality on the ground.

Strength built on love of sport

A spinal cord injury at age 17 left Chua in a wheelchair. It took him time to come to terms with the life that followed, but the injury never diminished his love for sport.

He went on to become a national para-athlete, focusing on wheelchair basketball. He represented Malaysia at Asean and Asian para competitions from 2004 to 2023.

After retiring from competitive basketball, he turned to marathons. The appeal was not simply the race.

Running alongside the wider community gives Chua a chance to share space and experience with everyone else, without being separated by his physical condition.

There are runners of different races, ages, and backgrounds, each carrying their own reasons for being there.

Some are chasing personal bests. Others are simply trying to make it to the finish line.

But for a few hours, they share the same road. That is the kind of Malaysia he wants to see beyond sporting events.

What he remembers most is the Malaysia of his school days in Ampang, Selangor — when Malay, Chinese, and Indian students could sit together in the canteen, share food, and mingle without dwelling too much on their differences.

Those everyday interactions, he believes, mattered.

“Such interactions help build a sense of familiarity, before it eventually grows into a love for the country,” said Chua, who has found that spirit again in the Kelana Jaya Running Club, which comprises participants from all races.

For Chua, the Malaysian spirit is found not in grand gestures or patriotic slogans, but in ordinary people making time for one another, even when every second counts.

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