After 8 attempts, these triplets have finally become soldiers

For identical triplets Muhammad Nuriman, Muhammad Nuramin and Muhammad Nurnaim Irwan, becoming soldiers was not just a passing childhood fantasy.

The 21-year-old siblings first tried to join the armed forces in 2023 after finishing secondary school, but were turned away because they did not meet the minimum height requirement.

That setback was followed by more unsuccessful attempts: seven applications to the Malaysian Army and one to the Royal Malaysian Navy. Still, they kept going.

Their chance finally came this year, after the army revised its minimum height requirement for recruits from 162cm to 157cm. At 158cm, all three brothers were now eligible.

As children, the brothers often saw photographs of their grandfather, Ismail Ujang, 80, who served in the navy for 25 years before retiring as a Warrant Officer I.

“We saw his old photographs in his white uniform, and that was when we became interested in becoming soldiers,” Nuramin told Bernama.

Their grandfather’s stories only deepened that fascination: he would tell them about his years in service, including encounters with pirates in the waters off Lahad Datu while stationed in Labuan.

The brothers carried that ambition into adulthood, even as repeated rejection forced them to find other ways forward. They enrolled at the Kuala Lumpur Industrial Training Institute and earned Malaysian Skills Certificate Level 3 qualifications, while continuing to prepare themselves physically and mentally.

They also joined the Territorial Army Regiment and took part in national service training last year. While these experiences did not guarantee them a place in the regular army, they kept the dream alive.

Early this year, all three succeeded in the selection process and began six months of basic military training in Port Dickson. They were among 1,485 recruits who completed the programme on Oct 17.

Nurnaim said one of the hardest parts was the final field exercise, which tested combat skills, teamwork and mental endurance under pressure.

Yet even during the most demanding weeks, there were lighter moments – fellow recruits and instructors frequently struggled to tell the brothers apart.

Their mother, Yusnizah Yusof, 52, said she and her husband had always supported the boys, driving them to selection exercises in Seremban, Kuala Lumpur and Pahang despite the repeated disappointments.

“We spent a lot of time taking them to the various camps where selection exercises were held so they could pursue their dreams,” she said.

Together at last – and now apart

After years of trying to enter the army together, the triplets now face something new: separation. Nuriman has been posted to Ipoh, Nuramin to Kuching and Nurnaim to Johor Bahru.

For three brothers who trained, applied and persevered alongside one another, that marks a major change.

“There is some sadness, of course, but being apart will not stop the three of us from moving forward,” Nurnaim said.

Their grandfather’s old photographs may have sparked the idea years ago, but the rest was theirs: eight disappointments, months of training, and the determination to earn the uniforms they had wanted since childhood.

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