12 Malaysian Athletes To Keep An Eye On At The 2023 SEA Games
The youngest athlete representing Malaysia is only 11 years old.
Taking place in Phnom Penh, Cambodia this year, the 2023 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games will officially begin on 5 May and end on 17 May
The Malaysian contingent will consist of 677 athletes, with a breakdown of 403 men and 274 women.
During the last SEA Games in Hanoi, Vietnam, Malaysia finished sixth overall with 39 gold, 45 silver, and 90 bronze medals.
According to Bernama, the medal target for this year's biennial multi-sport event will only be announced on 30 April.
Here's a look at some local athletes who could potentially bring home medals this year:
1. Shereen Samson Vallabouy (Track & field)
Image via Utusan Malaysia
The 24-year-old recently made headlines after she broke a 30-year-old national women's record in the women's 400m at the 63rd Annual Mt SAC Relays Athletics Championship in California.
Her time of 51.8s makes Shereen the first Malaysian woman to go under 52 seconds in the event, an unparalleled feat for a woman in Malaysian athletics history.
The Perak-born athlete will be representing the nation in the 400m and 4x400m events at the 2023 SEA Games.
2. Zara Alessya Mohamad Suadi (Finswimming)
Image via Sinar Harian
The 11-year-old is the youngest athlete representing Malaysia in the SEA Games this year.
Early this year, she participated in the 2023 Malaysian Finswimming Championships where she won five gold medals and one silver medal, and even recorded the fourth fastest time in the surface event, Bernama reported.
Zara, who is her team's 'little mermaid', will compete in the 4x100m and 4x50m surface relay events in Cambodia.
3. Khairul Hafiz Jantan (Track & Field)
The 25-year-old former SEA Games gold medalist is looking to make a comeback this year after failing to qualify last year, reports New Straits Times.
Khairul recently won the gold medal at the Cambodia SEA Games 100 metres warm-up race at the Shield Series: Darren Thrupp Shield Championship in Queensland, Australia on 18 March.
He told Free Malaysia Today that his victory is a big boost for him ahead of the SEA Games.
The Melaka-born athlete will be participating in the 100m and 4x100m relay events.
4. Nor Sarah Adi (Pole Vault and 4x100m relay)
Image via Utusan Malaysia
National athletics coach Zaki Sadri told Bernama that the 22-year-old is capable of defending her gold medal in the pole vault event during the 2023 SEA Games.
Zaki made his prediction based on Sarah's outstanding performance in the previous SEA Games and her silver medal in the Taiwan International Indoor Meet last March.
Besides pole vaulting, she is also representing Malaysia in the 4x100m relay event.
5. Grace Wong Xiu Mei (Hammer Throw)
Image via New Straits Times
According to The Star, Grace won Malaysia's first gold medal during the last SEA Games in Vietnam.
The 22-year-old Sarawakian currently holds the national record of 62.48m, and she is also the first Malaysian women to qualify for the final in a field event at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Grace will compete in the hammer throw event, alongside Nurul Hidayah Lukman.
6. Khiew Hoe Yan (Swimming)
Image via Astro Awani
Khiew will be participating in a total of seven swimming events, which are 100m freestyle, 200m freestyle, 400m freestyle, 200m backstroke, 4x100m freestyle relay, 4x200m freestyle relay, and the 4x100m medley relay.
In the last SEA Games, the 20-year-old bagged one gold, three silver, and three bronze medals.
Recently, he set a new record at the Malaysia Invitational age group championships in the men's 400m freestyle, with a time of 3:52.28s, reports New Straits Times.
7. Muhammad Irfan Shamsuddin (Discus Throw)
Image via Kosmo
Irfan has won five gold medals in a row for his event since the 2013 SEA Games in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar.
The 27-year-old told theSundaily that he aims to defend his gold in Phnom Penh, as a warm-up to his medal mission at the Asian Championships in Pattaya, Thailand from 12 to 16 July and the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China from 23 September to 8 October.
8. Farrell Glenn Felix Jurus (High Jump)
Image via Sports247
Farrell will be competing in his first SEA Games after three-time SEA Games high jump champion Nauraj Singh Randhawa dropped out due to an injury, reports New Straits Times.
The 21-year-old Sabahan said that Nauraj is his idol and he hopes to improve his personal best of 2.15m in Phnom Penh.
His coach, Hup Wei, said that Farrell has proven himself in domestic competitions, and has the ability to outshine his more experienced rivals in the SEA Games.
9. Daren James Nair (Track & Field)
Image via Team SUKMA Selangor 2022
According to New Straits Times, despite being a novice, it is hard to not see Daren as a potential gold medalist for Malaysia in the SEA Games.
The 21-year-old from Kajang has a personal best of 15:07.14s at the Malaysia Games last September, and he won gold at the Malaysian Track and Field Championships last February with a time of 15:19.26s.
Both his times in the events mentioned above were better than Vietnam's Nguyen Van Lai, who won gold at last year's SEA Games with a time of 16:34.10s.
Daren will be competing in the 5,000m and 3,000m steeplechase events.
10. Leong Jun Hao (Badminton)
Image via New Straits Times
According to News Straits Times, Leong has been selected to lead Malaysia's charge at the 2023 SEA Games.
The 24-year-old said that he is motivated and looking forward to shining in the SEA Games next month.
Leong, who ranks 78 in the world, will be playing in the singles and team events.
11. Siti Nurshuhaini Azman (Badminton)
Image via Harian Metro
Siti is determined to stand out at this year's SEA Games after returning empty-handed during her debut in the last edition of the biennial games.
The Selangor-born athlete said that she is a little surprised by the trust from the coaching staff, who chose her to represent the country in the singles and team events.
The 18-year-old has previously won gold in the Malaysia Games, as well as two silver medals in the Czech Open and Dutch International, respectively.
12. Lim Kok Leong (Billiards)
Image via Utusan Malaysia
Lim, who goes by the nickname 'Kow Kia', which means puppy, made history in November 2022 as the first Malaysian to win the World Amateur Snooker Championship in Antalya, Turkey, reports New Straits Times.
The 28-year-old Penangite will be participating in four events, which are snooker singles, snooker six singles, snooker doubles, and snooker six red doubles.
In the last SEA Games, Lim won one gold and one silver medal.
Here are some Malaysian athletes who have made our country proud in past SEA Games:
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