S-final defeat a 'blessing in disguise' for Khadijah

Even as Siti Khadijah Shahrem made history on Dec 14 by becoming Singapore’s first female wushu exponent to win a sanda medal at the SEA Games, the overwhelming feeling was one of disappointment.

- Kimberly Kwek Sports Correspondent

After her 2-0 defeat by Myanmar’s Hnin Nu Wah in the women’s 60kg semifinals, which earned her a joint-bronze, the 24-year-old’s despair was evident as she was in tears after the bout.

Despite making the switch from silat only in August, she had entered the Games with big ambitions.

She said: “I was disappointed... I didn’t want to lose, especially because my parents travelled so far just to watch me fight, because I owe it to my coaches who've done so much for me and to the country — that’s one of the reasons I chose to go outside my comfort zone.”

Earlier in the day at the Chaeng Watthana Government Complex, she beat Laos’ Bulisavong Sudalath 2-0 in the quarterfinals to guarantee a historic medal.

Singapore has only had one other medal in the discipline, a bronze by Ivan Lin at the 2015 SEA Games.

The Chinese martial art of wushu comprises two forms — taolu is the performance of choreographed routines, while sanda is a full-contact combat sport.

Noting that this was the first time Singapore sent a female sanda ath-