SUKMA: Shannon Hits Record-breaking Hat-trick, Bags Two More Golds

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 21 (Bernama) -- Fifteen-year-old swimmer Shannon Tan Yan Qing enjoyed a record-breaking day after smashing the Malaysia Games (SUKMA) record three times while helping Selangor win two swimming gold medals at the 2026 edition here today.

Shannon first broke the SUKMA record in the women's 200-metre (m) butterfly during the morning heats, clocking 2 minutes 15.77 seconds (s) at the Darul Ehsan Aquatic Centre to erase the previous mark of 2:17.79s set by Sarawak's Hii Siew Siew at the 2012 edition in Pahang.

She went even faster in the final, clocking 2:15.13s to win gold and lower her own meet record for the second time in a single day, while coming within 0.83s of Khoo Cai Lin's national record of 2:14.30s set in 2009.

The teenager was not done yet, returning to help the hosts clinch gold in the women's 4x100m freestyle relay and break another SUKMA record.

The Selangor quartet, comprising Khew Zi Xian, Chong Yi Yuan, Eliza Ai Shen Tan and Shannon, clocked 3:54.54s to eclipse the previous meet record of 3:55.84s set by the state at the last edition in Sarawak.

The Federal Territories claimed silver in 3:58.13s, while Penang settled for bronze in 3:59.83s.

Speaking after the medal ceremony, Shannon said the two records she set today were particularly special, especially after putting in strong performances in both the individual and relay events.

“I really tried my best and for the relay, we all had fun and enjoyed the race. So I think that’s really important and it’s really, really special to me,” she told reporters.

Despite the sublime performances, Shannon said she remained hungry for more, with the prospect of challenging the national record in other events providing added motivation to work harder in training.

She will now turn her attention to the women's 100m butterfly tomorrow, which she described as one of her favourite events, although she admitted to feeling tired after a demanding day in the pool and planned to focus on recovery before the race.

The double-gold haul today took Shannon's tally to five gold medals at the Games, after she had earlier won the women's 400m individual medley, women's 200m individual medley and 4x100m mixed medley events.

Meanwhile, Federal Territories swimmer Muhammad Dhuha Dzulfikry continued his dominance in the men's 1,500m freestyle by successfully defending his gold medal in 15:59.79s.

However, the 18-year-old was left disappointed after falling short of his SUKMA record of 15:51.53s, which he set at the previous edition in Sarawak.

“I felt it could have been better as I aimed to break my own record from the previous SUKMA, but today was not my lucky day,” he said.

Penang swimmer Samuel Chong Weng Lai took silver in 16:39.06s, while host swimmer Hermann Bok Yu Tang claimed bronze in 16:48.44s.

SUKMA Selangor 2026, which kicked off on Aug 15, will run until Aug 24.

-- BERNAMA