Tears turn to cheers as netizens hail Farah Ann despite Olympic exit

KUALA LUMPUR: National women's artistic gymnast Farah Ann Abdul Hadi may have ended her Olympic debut in tears, but she must surely have a big smile on her face right now - thanks to the many encouraging and positive posts on social media by her fans.

The 27-year-old was despondent when she exited the Ariake Gymnastics Centre yesterday (July 25) after finishing 68th overall in the individual all-around qualifiers, thus ending her journey in Tokyo, Japan.

The gymnast, who was clad in a striking orange leotard, completed the qualifying round with a total score of 48.565 points.

Not only was she emotionally scarred, but she also suffered physical scars.

"When you wake up after the Olympic Games' battle scars," she posted on her Instagram story, showing a few red blotches on both her hands.

Although she failed in her attempt to go further in Japan, Farah Ann still managed to dance her way into the hearts of Malaysians.

This includes Los-Angeles based Malaysian singer Yuna, who was mesmerised by the Selangor-born gymnast's performance and wrote on Twitter: "OMG (Oh my god) queen @farahannhadi."

Another Twitter user known as @lyneids had his own way of congratulating Farah Ann - producing a special painting of the gymnast's display at the Tokyo Olympics.

"Quick watercolour painting of Farah Ann. You did great. Well done and chin up! Enjoy being an Olympian!," the user said.

Another fan, @IzzatiTaufek, wrote: "Farah Ann didn't make it to the final round but Malaysians are beyond proud of her. Hats off and well done, @farahannhadi! Kami tetap sokong. #DemiMalaysia."

A delighted Farah Ann said she was grateful to receive such strong backing from Malaysians, who rallied behind her yesterday.

"Thank you for all your love and support... it really means the world to me... Love you so much," she said.

Farah Ann, who competed in subdivision four of the qualifying round, got off to a shaky start when she scored 11.600 points in the uneven bars and 11.566 points in the balance beam apparatus.

The 27-year-old then amassed 12.233 points in the floor exercise before ending the day in style with 13.166 points on the vault for her highest score of all four apparatus.

Only the top 24 ranked gymnasts, with a maximum of two representatives per country, will qualify for the July 29 all-around final while the top eight ranked gymnasts, with a maximum of two representatives per country, will feature in the apparatus finals.

As expected, reigning Olympic champion Simone Biles of the United States of America topped the overall ranking yesterday with 57.731 points, followed by Brazil's Rebeca Andrade (57.399 points) and another American, Sunisa Lee (57.166 points).

-- BERNAMA