They included former national skipper Soh Chin Aun, N Thanabalan and Santokh Singh.
“Stay strong,” Soh told Vellapan’s widow, Pauline, as they embraced. He also apologised as he had to rush off.
Thanabalan and Santokh shared memories of the man who once played peace-broker to help Japan and South Korea co-host the World Cup in 2002.
Friends and family spoke about Vellapan’s exploits in the footballing arena and his passion for golf, with Pauline recalling her late husband’s refusal to hire a caddy.
Others spoke about his geniality and of how he would speak to anybody “big or small”.
Former sports journalist Randhir Singh, who described Vellapan as a “towering Malaysian” and a good friend, recalled how the latter had gone the extra mile to help him when he was a reporter with the New Straits Times.
Randhir had sought Vellapan’s help to get Hamzah Abu Samah, the then AFC president, to launch the daily’s World Cup special.
“But Peter replied, ‘why do you want Hamzah, when you can get João Havelange?,” he told FMT.
“He gave us a huge scoop. The Star was launching their World Cup book too but ours was launched by the FIFA president. What a favour for a friend.
“But he won’t just go an extra mile for a friend, he will go out of his way to help anybody.”
Vellapan, Randhir added, had an excellent relationship with journalists.
He wasn’t just a good source for stories, Randhir said, but one could also learn a lot from him.
“He was among the rare breed of Malaysian sports officials who left an indelible mark on the sport internationally,” he said, adding that in the footballing world which was mostly dominated by the Caucasians, Vellapan stood out.
Dr M Jegathesan, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) Medical Committee chairman, described Vellapan as a friend who cared and also a very understanding person.
The sprint legend who was friends with Vellapan for over four decades said he first met the latter in 1971, but they grew closer in 1972 when they attended the Olympic Games in Munich, especially after the terror attack.
Vellapan was the assistant manager for the national football team.
Jegathesan said when things were down, Vellapan would have his back and he would always offer the correct perspective.
“He was a friend for life.”