Tan happy with 19-gold haul as S'pore 'transition'

As Singapore's swimmers ended their SEA Games campaign by winning five out of seven races on the final night to take their tally to 19 golds, eight silvers and seven bronzes, they celebrated by singing: “We have won the war one more time.”

- David Lee

While they topped the medal tally for an 11th consecutive edition, they would do well to learn from the slow start in Bangkok, with just seven golds from the first 19 events, and not be complacent as they enter a “transition” phase going into the 2027 edition in Malaysia to rebuild for the 2029 home Games.

National swimming head coach and performance director Gary Tan, 43, gave an assurance that there will be youngsters coming through to replace the veterans, who are in the twilight of their careers.

He cited five-gold Letitia Sim, and three-gold Gan Ching Hwee and Mikkel Lee, who were unbeaten in their individual events.

He also paid tribute to warhorses like Teong Tzen Wei and siblings Quah Ting Wen and Quah Zheng Wen, who bounced back after setbacks at the start of the meet.

According to Singapore Aquatics, the swimmers racked up five national records, 10 meet records and 17 personals bests, compared to six, five and 13 respectively in 2023, when they won 22 golds.