KUANTAN • The former ruler of Pahang, Sultan Ahmad Shah, 88, died yesterday.

His son is the current Malaysian king, Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin.

Announcing the death, Pahang Menteri Besar Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail said the former ruler died at the National Heart Institute in Kuala Lumpur, at about 8.50am.

The late sultan was born on Oct 24, 1930, at Istana Mangga Tunggal in the Pahang royal town of Pekan, and was the only son of Sultan Abu Bakar and Tengku Ampuan Fatimah.

Sultan Ahmad Shah married Tengku Ampuan Afzan Tengku Tengku Muhammad in 1954 and the couple had two sons and five daughters, including Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin.

Tengku Ampuan Afzan died in 1988.

Sultan Ahmad Shah ascended the throne of the largest state in Peninsular Malaysia on May 7, 1974, following the death of Sultan Abu Bakar.

He also served as the seventh Malaysian king from 1979 to 1984.

A new Malaysian king is appointed every five years in a unique rotational system involving Malaysia's nine royal houses.

In 1991, Sultan Ahmad Shah married Sultanah Kalsom Abdullah, and from the union, they had a prince.

The late ruler was a keen sportsman who loved football, golf and polo. He was president of the Football Association of Malaysia for 30 years, from 1984 to 2014.

Sultan Ahmad Shah had been ill for some time and, thus, an amendment to the state Constitution was made to allow the Pahang royal council to conduct his abdication earlier this year.

His eldest son, Sultan Abdullah, was subsequently proclaimed the sixth sultan of Pahang of the modern era on Jan 15, paving the way for him to become the Malaysian king.

THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK