Prime act! (The Malay Mail)

THE Prime Minister of Malaysia came a calling. So did Prince Edward of
England. It was indeed a very special occasion that necessitated a piece
of history at the Pyramid Bowl yesterday.
 Kenny Ang and Ben Heng responded magnificently by delivering Malaysia's
first gold of the 16th Commonwealth Games at 5.58pm to add to the women's
doubles silver Shalin Zuikifli and Lai Kin Ngoh had landed in the morning.
 Though they did not start off as the favourites, the Malaysian pair gave
Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the country much to cheer about at the
end of the men's doubles.
 Dr Mahathir had surprised the packed crowd at the Pyramid when he
dropped by during the fifth block to add to the atmosphere. Fixated by the
action, he left his VIP seat at the sixth block to sit among the
spectators directly behind Kenny and Beng.
 And the duo certainly felt his presence, firing on to lead the pack as
they done from the very first block.
 Ben said: "I was shocked to see the Prime Minister and when he moved to
sit behind us, I knew we couldn't let him down.
 "He certainly got me going and when we shook hands before he left, he
brought me more luck as I went on to score a 232 in the next game."
 Kenny said: "I must admit that I was under more pressure when the PM sat
behind us. But it also brought out the best in me as I didn't want to
disappoint him."
 The fans at the alley were also surprised by the PM's presence and they
gave him a standing ovation when he left after the sixth block to attend
the rugby tournament.
 Earlier, Prince Edward, the president of the Commonwealth Games
Federation, was also a witness on the opening day of the bowling
competition.
 The Malaysian pair rolled a total of 3,552 pinfalls to beat Bermuda's
Antoine Jones and Condrad Lister by 223 pinfalls into second place.
Australians Michael Muir and Francis Ryan finished third with 3,229.
 Ten minutes after Malaysia were awarded the gold, Datuk Dr P.S. Nathan,
the president of the Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Congress, got a call from Dr
M to convey his congratulations.
 Kenny, at 46 the oldest member of the team, and Ben, 24, had made his
day with their prime act.
                              (END)