SUKMA 2026: Danish, From Bullying Victim To Silat Champion

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 19 (Bernama) -- What started as a desire to learn silat to defend himself against bullying eventually paved the way for Melaka athlete Muhammad Danish Asyraaf Asuwandi to achieve success in the sport.

In the silat final of the 2026 Malaysia Games (SUKMA), the 17-year-old won gold in the men’s under-45kg category after defeating Penang exponent Ihsan Zulfaqar Mohd Izwan 25-19.

“At first, I didn’t want to do it because I was more interested in football. But another reason I became interested in silat was that I was often bullied at school.

“After that, I caught the attention of the coach, and he invited me to take up silat,” said Danish, who started practising the sport at the age of nine.

According to the national junior exponent, the gold medal was especially meaningful as this was his first appearance at the biennial Games.

“I would like to thank my coach, who has fought tirelessly to help me from when I was young until now,” he said, struggling to hold back tears.

Danish said he would now focus on his studies as he prepares to sit for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination this year.

He said that after completing his SPM, he would turn his attention back to silat, aiming to win gold should he be selected to represent the country at the 2027 SEA Games.

-- BERNAMA