Welson eyes medals at C’wealth, Asian Games
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Olympian of the Year 2017 Welson Sim aims to set better timings and win medals at the Commonwealth and Asian Games next year, to make his second appearance in both the Games more memorable ones.
The 20-year- old Sarawakian, who will be competing in a number of meets in the run up for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in April, promised to work hard to improve his personal bests and identify where he stands among his competitors ahead of the Games.
“Now I am still recovering from the SEA Games and training like usual…Will start the new season with an invitational in Perth in January, against Australia’s best swimmers. After that, I will compete in meets in Singapore ( Feb) and Malaysia ( March), fol lowed by Commonwealth Games in April. So I will have a good preparation before the Games.
“This (Olympian award) is the biggest honour I have achieved so far…It is a big surprise because I have never thought I would win. I will give my best, work harder and my highest goal is to get a medal for Malaysia in Commonwealth and Asian Games,” he told reporters after receiving the Olympian of the Year award at the 24th Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) Annual Dinner and Awards Night at Wisma OCM on Thursday night.
In the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games in August, the Kuchingborn youth claimed two gold after
This (Olympian award) is the biggest honour I have achieved so far…It is a big surprise because I have never thought I would win.
defending his 400m freestyle title and winning the 200m freestyle event, besides a silver and a bronze in the 4x100m freestyle and 4x200m freestyle events.
He had also won the gold medal in the men’s 400m freestyle at the Mare Nostrum Tour in Monaco in June by edging Olympic champion Mack Horton of Australia and rewrote the national record, to become only the second Malaysian to win a title in the tour, after Phee Jinq En, last year.
Welson’s national records of 1: 47.36s and 3: 39.48s are inside the 2014 Asian Games bronze medal marks in the 200m freestyle and 400m freestyle events, respectively. “I have not decided what events to compete in Commonwealth Games. I will only make the decision a few weeks before the Games,” he said.
Welson is highly expected to end Malaysia’s Commonwealth and Asian Games medal drought in swimming, where last time Malaysia won a medal was through Alex Lim Keng Liat in 2002.
At the 2002 Manchester Games, Alex claimed a silver in the 50m backstroke and a bronze in 100m backstroke, while in the 2002 Busan Asian Games, he bagged silver after failed to retain his 100m backstroke title. — Bernama
Welson Sim, Olympian of the Year 2017