Singapore confirmed their status as kings of the pool at the Southeast Asian Games yesterday as track and field got under way and hosts Laos eyed a place in the soccer final.
Four more Games records tumbled on the final evening of swimming, the latest in a raft of marks broken in Laos’ capital, while on the first day of athletics Thailand won four golds to reach 42 overall.
Singapore added two more golds in the pool to finish ahead of Malaysia, for whom Daniel Bego notched five wins on his own.
PHOTO: AFP
Many of the swimmers were wearing the polyurethane suits that will be banned by swimming’s world governing body FINA from Jan. 1.
Peter Churchill, part of Singapore’s coaching team, put his country’s success down to a strong culture of swimming, a diverse coaching team involving multinational talent and the embracing of technology.
“To be part of this is sensational. We’ve had a tough year and this finishes it off on a high note,” said Churchill, who highlighted the four individual golds won by Tao Li and the 50m freestyle win by 16-year-old Lim Xiang Qi.
An exhausted Bego said: “I didn’t come here with any expectations. I didn’t have the best preparations because I was still studying. Now I just want to get some rest. I’ll go home and have a good sleep.”
TRACK AND FIELD
Meanwhile, on the track Thailand, who came out on top when they hosted the Games in 2007, took gold in the men’s and women’s 4x400m relays, as well as the women’s high jump and triple jump, while Vietnamese athletes won the men’s and women’s 800m races and the decathlon.
Vietnam’s Nguyen Dinh Cuong, who successfully defended his 800m crown, said: “This year has been difficult because I have had an injury and the Malaysian athletes are strong, so I’m happy to win.”
Indonesia’s defending champion in the women’s 5,000m was disappointed to miss out on breaking her own Games record despite her win.
“I’m happy, but not satisfied because I didn’t break the record, but I’m confident for the 10,000m,” Triyaningsih said.
Thailand’s Thitima Muangjan broke her own Games record in the women’s triple jump, setting a new mark of 14.08m and compatriot Noeng-Ruthai Chaipech broke the record in the women’s high jump with a jump of 1.94m.
SOCCER SEMIS
Crowds earlier swarmed toward the stadium bedecked in Laos’ colors to watch their team in the semi-final of the under-23 soccer tournament.
Before the match, coach Alfred Riedl said his team, facing Malaysia, conquerors of hotly fancied Thailand, had the ability to raise their game when necessary and predicted his side would meet Vietnam in the final.
“I know that public opinion holds that Malaysia will beat Laos but, as you know, Laos can play in more than one gear and can switch to a higher gear if necessary to up their game. They won’t be easy to beat,” he told media during a training session.
In the other semi-final, Vietnam faced Singapore.
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