ProfileWho is Azizulhasni Awang? Malaysia’s Olympic bronze-winning cyclist who had a wooden splint through his calf
- The 33-year-old is defined by graphic images of a 20cm piece of wood protruding through his left leg during a track cycling event in Manchester in 2011
- A brilliant student who chose sports over academics, deeply devout Muslim Azizul reaches out to his online fans through stories, life lessons and religion
Warning: graphic content follows
Poet, raconteur, Muslim role model, loving husband and father, survivor, influencer and world-class athlete. Malaysian track cyclist Azizulawang Hasni has taken on iconic status is his home country, gaining fame for a gruesome calf injury suffered in 2011 and earning glory by winning a keirin bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Known as the “Pocket Rocketman”, the 1.69m track star is among the favourites for gold in the men’s keirin in Tokyo and his status in Malaysia is similar to that of Hong Kong’s own keirin specialist Sarah Lee Wai-sze, an Olympic bronze medallist from 2012 who is also going for gold this summer.
The 33-year-old Azizul became his country’s first cycling Olympic medallist when he took bronze in Rio and is his country’s main medal hope in Tokyo.
He maintains a passionate relationship with his followers on social media, opening up his life to his fans, regaling them with stories, offering life advice and at times using his Muslim faith to reach out to his fellow believers. He has more than 380,000 Facebook followers and 47,000 instagram fans.