Wushu: Patience, hard work pays off for Cebelle, contributes Selangor's first gold

15/09/2022 04:09 PM

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 15 (Bernama) -- Selangor wushu exponent Mandy Cebelle Chen ended her eight-year wait for a Malaysia Games (Sukma) gold medal after topping the women's Taijiquan event at Gymnasium 2 of the National Sports Council (MSN) in Bukit Jalil here, today.

The 19-year-old's feat was even more meaningful as it was the first gold won by the Selangor contingent at the 20th edition of the Games.

She displayed mesmerising moves that captivated the hearts of the judges to collect the highest score of 9.600 points to beat Federal Territory athlete Kwan Yong Xin who took silver with 9.556 points while the bronze went to Yong Arifah Khairul Kok of Sarawak (9.530 points).

Commenting on her performance, the athlete who prefers to be called by her middle name said she did not expect the victory but her long wait and hard work for eight years as well worth it.

“From the moment I started Wushu in 2015, I have been waiting for this, because the SUKMA is the highest competition in Malaysia and it's a very prestigious level. So I feel really proud of myself because I faced a lot of obstacles this year.

“My own coach is my idol, so I just aspired to be as good as him in every competition,” she said when met by reporters afterwards.

Meanwhile, the men's category of the same event saw Melaka continue their excellent streak after Tan Zhi Yan was in a class of his own to win the gold over Sarawak's Mok Xiao Yuan who had to settle for silver while Negeri Sembilan's Wong Zi Hong took the bronze.

The 22-year-old Zhi Yan scored 9.650 points, Xiao Yuan (9.570) and Wong Zi (9.556).

"I should have targeted to perform better, but this is what I could do, thanks to my coach who helped me a lot. I will try do better next in the Men's Taijijian event tomorrow," said Zhi Yan, who was also a gold medallist at this year's Hanoi SEA Games.

 -- BERNAMA