Nur Syaiful, who is making his debut at the Games, finished fifth out of six swimmers in the first heat with a time of 2:56.78s before being informed by the referee his participation had been cancelled.

The Asian record of 2:58.11s is held by Thai swimmer Phuchit Aingchaiyaphum, which he set at a meet in Melbourne, Australia last year.

The Sarawak athlete, who set a personal best time of 2:59.01s in London in 2019, admitted luck was not on his side after revealing he had to put a plaster on his left shoulder due to an injury he sustained last Saturday.

The 26-year-old admitted his lack of experience meant he did not know he needed to confirm this (plaster on) before the competition in order to compete.

“Before that, I was told by the doctor my situation was 50-50 and I had the option to remove the plaster or vice versa,” he said.

“The official who checked my equipment (goggles, jacket, and pants) before I went down to the pool also allowed me perform. However, I was taken aback by the referee’s decision to cancel my participation after they informed me the use of plasters is strictly prohibited.”

As a result, Nur Syaiful, who was unsuccessful in his protest of the decision, will confirm his status, including showing a letter from the medical doctor before competing in the S5 men’s 100m freestyle event tomorrow morning.

Nur Syaiful, who suffered deformity in both legs as a result of an accident when he was 17, stressed his spirit remained steadfast until the finish line and that he is determined to rise above his disappointment in his next event.

“I held back my pain because I rely on shoulder movements to swim in the pool. I will do my best tomorrow,” said the Paralympian, who has been receiving medical treatment since last Monday.

The first heat saw Spanish swimmer Antoni Ponce Bertran beat his rivals to first place in 2:33.73s.

The best eight swimmers from the two qualifying heats make the cut for the final, scheduled to take place at 7.50pm today.