KUCHING: Dhuha Zulfikry of the Federal Territories and Kelly Teo of Sarawak made waves as the top male and female swimmers at the Malaysia Games (Sukma), capping their campaigns with impressive performances at the Pandelela Rinong Aquatics Centre in Petra Jaya today.
However, the biggest winner was Kelly, who clinched six gold, one silver, and two bronze medals, earning a staggering RM94,250 in incentives from the Sarawak state government.
The 18-year-old's haul leaves her just RM5,750 shy of the RM100,000 received by badminton stars Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik and Lee Zii Jia for their bronze medals at the Paris Olympics.
Kelly wrapped up her campaign today by taking gold in the 1,500m freestyle, clocking 17:56.21s.
Reflecting on her unexpected success, she said: "Before Sukma started, I only targeted three to four gold medals, so winning six is definitely unexpected.
"I'm happy to get the most amount of incentive. I can spend on myself and for others too.
"I want to treat my family and close friends, buy a car, and the rest I will save."
Meanwhile, 16-year-old Dhuha started the day by winning gold in the 800m freestyle with a time of 8:14.58s.
Melaka's Anselm Lee (8:37.28s) and Selangor's Jayden Goh (8:37.31s) claimed silver and bronze.
Despite a recent disappointment, Dhuha remains optimistic, saying: "First, I want to apologise to my teammates for letting them down in the 4x200m freestyle relay yesterday.
"I'm quite satisfied with my performance, and I will only get better from here on. My big target is to qualify for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
"I understand that the pressure will increase, but I believe I'm mentally strong enough to handle it.
"My immediate target is to win a Sea Games medal in Thailand next year."
The day also saw several records tumble.
FT's Chong Xin Lin set a new mark of 1:04.06s in the women's 100m breaststroke, surpassing Chan Kah Yan's 2012 record of 1:05.31s.
Penang's Vivian Tee (1:06.85s) took silver, while Kelly added a bronze to her collection with a time of 1:07.38s.
Penang's Tong Yu Jing broke Keith Lim's 2018 record of 23.19s in the 50m freestyle, clocking 23.06s to win gold.
Teammate Chris Chew (23.32s) took silver, with FT's Yap Shun Min (23.80s) securing bronze.
Selangor smashed their own 2016 4x100m medley relay record of 3:49.98s by posting a new time of 3:49.12s.
FT also broke their own women's 4x100m medley relay record from 2012, recording 4:19.79s.
FT emerged as the overall champions with 16 gold, eight silver, and seven bronze medals, followed by Selangor (13-19-7) and Sarawak (9-1-7).
RESULTS
Men's 800m: 1 Dhuha Dzulfikry (FT) 8:14.58s, 2 Anselm Lee (Mel) 8:37.28, 3 Jayden Goh (Sel) 8:37.31;
100m backstroke: 1 Hii Puong Wei (Swk) 57.87, 2 Teoh Kar Chuan (Sgr) 59.06, 3 David Lee (FT) 59.75;
50m freestyle: 1 Tong Yu Jing (Pen) 23.06 (MR), 2 Chris Chew (Pen) 23.32, 3 Yap Min Shun (FT) 23.80;
4x100 medley relay: 1 Selangor 3:49.12 (MR), 2 Federal Territories 3:51.82, 3 Penang 4:00.41.
Women's 1,500m freestyle: 1 Kelly Teo (Swk) 17:56.21s, 2 Chu Xin Ying (Sab) 18:10.61, 3 Yun Xuan Yeoh (Pen) 18:19.76;
100m backstroke: Chong Xin Lin (FT) 1:04.06 (MR), 2 Vivian Tee (Pen) 1:06.85, 3 Kelly Teo (Swk) 1:07.38;
50m freestyle: 1 Lee Wei Wen (FT) 26.54, 2 Wong Shi Qi (Phg) 26.75, 3 Loo Yie Bing (Sab) 27.05;
4x100 medley relay: 1 Federal Territories 4:19.79 (MR), 2 Selangor 4:21.93, 3 Penang 4:30.62.