Exclusive Story by WeirdKaya - Proper accreditation to WeirdKaya and consent from the interviewee are required.
Today, Shahmalarani Chandran is known as one of Malaysia’s most accomplished karate athletes.
The 28-year-old from Ipoh is a three-time SEA Games gold medallist and a World Karate Championships silver medallist.
However, before standing on the world stage, she reached a point where she questioned whether she was good enough to continue.
Speaking exclusively to WeirdKaya, Shahmalarani shared how a painful loss nearly made her leave karate and how that difficult chapter eventually led to her greatest achievements.
Started off as a weekly hobby
Before becoming a national athlete, Shahmalarani described herself as an adventurous child who loved trying new things.
I was always someone who looked for opportunities and explored everything that came my way. That was how I eventually found karate.”
At first, karate was simply a hobby she attended once a week. She had no plans to turn it into a career and did not even know martial arts could be pursued competitively.
Still, Shahmalarani knew she was not someone who did things halfheartedly. “Whatever I do, I give it my 100%. I am not someone who does something just for fun,” she added.
Her perspective changed around 2015 and 2016 when she was selected to represent Malaysia for the first time. Having only trained for about four or five years, she was surprised that others saw potential in her.
“I remember thinking, ‘Are you sure?’ I was still very new and had so many things to learn.
“From that moment, karate was no longer just an activity and I began dedicating my time, focus and energy to making it a career.”
Strong support system
Behind Shahmalarani’s journey was the support of her parents, Chandran and Umarani, where her mother never stopped her from pursuing sports but reminded her to understand the challenges that came with it.
“She always told me, ‘If you can do it, then pursue it. But you must know whether you can balance everything and endure the struggles.’”
During Shahmalarani’s younger years, her mother would travel for an hour to send her to training before returning to pick her up after the two hour session.
As an athlete, I was doing it for myself. But as a parent, my mother had nothing to gain from doing all of that for me. Nothing can repay her for everything she did to help me grow in this sport.”
Alongside her parents, Shahmalarani also credits Master Prem and Master Loga for guiding her, adding that Master Prem believed she could reach the world stage even when she had much less experience than her teammates.
While many began karate at five or six years old, Shahmalarani started at 12.
He told me, “Sham, you are capable of so much more. The World Championship should be your ultimate target.”
Years later, his belief would become a reality.
Proving athletes can excel in studies
Shahmalarani was determined to challenge the stereotype that athletes pursued sports because they were not academically capable.
Even while preparing for the SEA Games and World Championships, she pursued a Master’s degree in Actuarial Science.
She also surprised herself by receiving the Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah Scholastic Award, the most prestigious honour conferred during her Sunway graduation.
“It was very difficult to balance my time and find the strength to do both, but I did not want to use sports as a reason to neglect my studies.”
However, balancing both paths came with setbacks.
During her foundation studies, she attended a three month overseas training camp in preparation for the SEA Games.
As online classes were not yet common, she was unable to attend lessons virtually and was eventually barred from sitting for an examination.
For someone who had consistently achieved straight As, seeing a failure on her academic record was difficult to accept.
“I suddenly saw a result saying that I had failed. It looked bad, but it was beyond my control, so I had to accept it.”
Rather than allowing the setback to define her, Shahmalarani repeated the subject the following semester and earned an A.
She later graduated with first class honours, proving to herself that she was capable of excelling in both sports and academics.
Pursuing karate at an elite level also meant sacrificing precious time with her loved ones.
If there were 100 family events, I probably missed 99 of them. Most of my relatives already knew I would probably not be there,” Shahmalarani quipped.
Still, she did not complain, as she understood that missing important moments was one of the many sacrifices required to earn a place on the podium.
The loss that nearly ended everything
Despite her discipline, Shahmalarani admitted that she considered walking away from karate several times, where she cited the most painful moment came which after the 2023 Asian Games.
“I entered as one of Malaysia’s medal prospects but suffered an early exit without reaching the semifinals.
“I could not accept it. I felt like maybe I was not good enough at the Asian level and should focus on something else.”
Following the loss, Shahmalarani told her coaches that she wanted to quit, focus on her Master’s degree and live a quieter life.
Instead of pressuring her to compete, Master Prem encouraged Shahmalarani to take a break from elite karate while continuing to train for enjoyment.
In retrospect, his advice was what helped her rediscover why she loved karate and eventually gave her the strength to continue.
Rising from the ashes
Looking back, Shahmalarani believes the lowest moment of her career ultimately became her biggest turning point.
Within three months of her Asian Games disappointment, she bounced back by winning gold at the World Karate 1 Series A, becoming the first and only Malaysian athlete to achieve the feat to date.
She later secured three World Karate 1 Series A gold medals throughout her career.
But her greatest achievements were still to come.
Shahmalarani became Malaysia’s first Asian Championships finalist in 13 years. She also became only the second Malaysian athlete to reach a World Karate Championships final, ending an 11 year wait for the country.
The year 2025 became the most memorable of her career. After winning silver at the World Karate Championships and completing a hat trick of SEA Games gold medals, she reached a career high ranking of world No. 5.
The athlete who once wondered whether she was good enough to compete in Asia had now stood on the world stage and made Malaysian karate history.
“After two or three months, you may look back and think, ‘Luckily, I stayed.’ The moment when you feel lost can become your turning point.”
Today, Shahmalarani continues to balance her roles as a national athlete, educator and business owner.
Beyond the medals and rankings, she hopes Malaysians will remember her as someone who never stopped chasing her dreams.
Her message to others is equally simple:
Dare to dream big and be resilient enough to work towards the dream you truly want to achieve.”
For Shahmalarani, those words reflect a journey built on sacrifice, resilience and the courage to keep going.
Exclusive Story by WeirdKaya – If you wish to reproduce this story, please ensure that you obtain consent from the interviewee to maintain factual accuracy and avoid the potential spread of misleading information.
If referencing or using any information from our story, we kindly ask that proper credit is given, along with a backlink to WeirdKaya, as acknowledgment of the efforts made by our editors in sourcing and conducting interviews.
READ ALSO:
