Kunalan at a Singapore Olympic Academy Youth Session, 2008.
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| Personal information | |
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| Full name | Canagasabai Kunalan |
| Nationality | Singapore |
| Born | (1942-10-23) 23 October 1942 (age 81) Singapore |
| Years active | 1963–1979 |
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| Sport | Athletics |
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| Coached by | Tan Eng Yoon Yap Boon Chuan |
| Retired | 1979 |
Canagasabai Kunalan (born 23 October 1942), known as C. Kunalan,[1] is a retired Singaporean sprinter, relay runner, former footballer and educator, widely regarded as one of Singapore's greatest ever athletes.[2][3] Named Sportsman of the Year in both 1968 and 1969,[4] his feat of 10.38 seconds in the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games 100 metres was a national record that stood for 33 years.[5][6][7]
Kunalan first came into running in 1963, at the age of 20. Formerly a football player, Kunalan switched to running when his PE teacher commended him for his fast-moving legs after noticing him running while chasing the ball.[8] He participated in the 1964 Summer Olympics as part of the Malaysian 4 × 100 m relay team with Malaysian sprint legend Mani Jegathesan, and subsequently represented Singapore after it left the federation.
Kunalan has participated in two Olympic Games (Tokyo, 1964 and Mexico City, 1968)[9] and has earned five Asian Games and fifteen Southeast Asian Peninsular Games medals.[10]
He had to retire in 1979 due to a heel injury.
C Kunalan taught six years in Tiong Bahru Primary School and thirteen years in Dunearn Secondary Technical School before joining the National Institute of Education in 1980.[1][11] Kunalan became an assistant professor there.[12] He specialized in functional anatomy and exercise physiology, and conducted practical classes in fitness and conditioning. Kunalan left the institute in 2010.[13]
He was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal in 2015 as part of the National Day Awards.[10]
He also serves as Vice Principal (Training and Selection) with the Singapore Athletic Association.[14][15]
Kunalan was one of the 23 members of the Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (SYOGOC).[16]
Kunalan is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. [17]
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