KUCHING: Selangor's Lee Yong Yi-Hun Hui Qi, who trained together for just three days, clinched the mixed doubles gold medal at the Malaysia Games (Sukma) today.
The pair delivered an impressive performance, defeating the Federal Territories' Tan Yi Hen-Lim Jing Shuen 3-2 (9-11, 11-6, 11-9, 7-11, 11-9) in the final at Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (SJK) Chung Hwa No. 3 here.
Yong Yi said the win was significant as it marked their first gold medal in their Sukma debut.
"We are delighted to bring this gold to Selangor. It was a challenging match because our opponents were strong and the favourites," he said.
"We only trained together for three days before Sukma. I was in Johor studying and training there, while she (Hui Qi) was in Selangor.
"However, we had partnered before at the Southeast Asian Junior Championships, and that experience was beneficial."
Hui Qi, who is dealing with a back injury, said the injury limited her training.
In the bronze medal match, Penang's Marcus Tan-Cindy Ma defeated Sarawak's Brandon Tan-Annie Siew 3-1 (12-10, 6-10, 11-2, 11-5).
Earlier, in the mixed team event, the Federal Territories won gold by defeating Penang 3-1 in the final, while Melaka secured bronze by overcoming Selangor 3-1.