SEA Games 2023: Noah Lim wins 1st gold for Singapore, as gold rush begins in swimming
Jiu-jitsu athlete retains U-69kg title, as swimmers clinch 4 golds in men's 100m free, 100m back, women's 200m fly, 4x100m free
SINGAPORE — Noah Lim added another SEA Games first to his name on Saturday (6 May). Four years after he became Singapore's first-ever jiu-jitsu gold medallist at the biennial regional sports meet, he has now clinched the first gold medal for the city-state at the Cambodia Games.
The 20-year-old proved to be dominant in the men's ne-waza gi Under-69kg category, as he defeated Laos' Slayman Jedidiah Phomsavath via submission in just 45 seconds in the final at the Chroy Changva Convention Centre.
His win came in the afternoon of the first official day of competition, ahead of the evening swimming finals where Singapore were expected to start their gold rush in the pool.
This is his third consecutive gold medal, after victories at the Philippines Games in 2019 in the lighter U-62kg event, and then at the Hanoi Games last year.
En route to the final, Lim had defeated Vietnam's Nguyen Huu Khang via submission in the preliminary round, before beating Malaysia's Adam Akasyah in the semi-finals.
He will have a chance to add a second gold on Sunday, when he takes part in the ne-waza nogi competition.
Fellow jiu-jitsu athlete Amirul Syafiq added a bronze medal in the men's ne-wazaa gi U-62kg event, winning two of his four bouts on Saturday.
Medal rush in the pool begins with four golds
As expected, Singapore's swimmers began their gold rush at the Morodok Techno Aquatic Center on Saturday evening, starting with Quah Jing Wen - who won six golds at last year's Hanoi Games.
The 22-year-old retained her women's 200m butterfly gold in 2min 10.63sec, finishing ahead of Thais Kamonchanok Kwanmuang (2:11.56) and Jinjutha Pholjamjumrus (2:14.37).
Next up was Jonathan Tan, who won the men's 100m freestyle in a personal-best 48.80sec. Olympian Quah Zheng Wen added a silver in the same event, coming just behind Tan in 48.99sec, while Malaysia's Khiew Hoe Yan earned the bronze in 49.89sec.
About half an hour later, Quah took to the pool again, and came out triumphant in the men's 100m backstroke event, winning the final in 55.22sec. He edged out Indonesia's Farrel Armandio Tangkas (55.80sec) and the Philippines' Jerard Dominic Jacinto (55.99sec).
Letitia Sim added a silver medal in the women's 50m breaststroke, clocking 31.62sec to finish behind Thailand's Jenjira Srisaard (31.22sec) and ahead of Malaysia's Phee Jinq En (31.94sec). Zachary Tan also clinched a bronze medal in the men's 200m individual medley (2:02.42), behind Vietnam's Tran Hung Nguyen (2:01.28) and Thailand's Dulyawat Kaewsriyong (2:02.25).
In the final swimming event of the evening, Singapore's women's 4x100m freestyle team of Quah Jing Wen, Quah Ting Wen, Amanda Lim and Nur Marina Chan powered to victory, clinching the 1,000th gold medal in Singapore's SEA Games history in 3min 44.29sec. The Philippines quartet came in second (3:47.96), while Thailand were third (3:50.01).
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