M'sian Olympic Swimmer Welson Sim Goes Viral In China For Being A "Flying Fish Prince"
Netizens are calling him a "handsome sunshine boy".
By Arisha Rozaidee — 26 Jul 2021, 11:45 AM
While Malaysians were rooting for Olympic swimmer Welson Sim to win a medal at the Tokyo Olympics, netizens in China admitted that he won their hearts instead
Welson Sim is one of the 30 athletes representing Malaysia at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
During the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on Friday, 23 July, Sim had two close-up shots of his masked face during the live telecast of the event.
The professional swimmer then went on to compete in the 200m and 400m freestyle events over the weekend on 24 and 25 July.
After his brief appearance during the opening ceremony, Chinese netizens took to social media to gush over the 24-year-old's good looks
Photos and random facts about the young athlete began circulating on Sina Weibo, a Twitter-like social media platform.
In a channel dedicated to good-looking athletes at the Tokyo Olympics, Sim's photos garnered several flattering comments.
One person wrote, "The handsomeness that can't be concealed even with a mask!"
Meanwhile, another netizen dubbed him as Malaysia's 'Flying Fish Prince' and complimented the swimmer on his bright smile.
Another user called the athlete a "handsome sunshine boy".
Checks by SAYS also found that a quick search of the keyword 'Malaysia' on the Chinese site will lead to photos of Sim that have been reposted by Sina Weibo users.
According to the official 2020 Tokyo Olympics website, Sim ranked at sixth and seventh place in Heat Two of the 200m and 400m freestyle events respectively
The athlete did not manage to proceed to the next stage of both events.
According to New Straits Times, Sim clocked a poor time of 3:58.25s and finished sixth out of eight swimmers at the Olympic Aquatic Centre in the 200m freestyle event. His performance was a far cry from his national record of 3:49.29, set in 2019.
The 400m freestyle finals took place yesterday, 25 July and Hafnaoui Ahmed from Tunisia bagged the gold medal.
Meanwhile, the 200m freestyle finals will be taking place on Tuesday, 27 July.
