Story by Rachel Yip, Rebecca Yip, Nicole Lum and Nicholina Chua/Red Sports. Photos by Matthew Lau/Red Sports

SEA Games Swimming

Roanne Ho swimming in the 50m breaststroke. She won gold and broke the Games record with a timing of 31.45 seconds. (Photo 1 © Matthew Lau/Red Sports)

OCBC Aquatic Centre, Wednesday, June 10 2015 — Team Singapore picked up four more gold medals on the penultimate day of swimming at the 28th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games to edge past their haul of 17 gold medals at the 2011 Games, which is second only to their 21-gold haul at the 1973 Southeast Asian Peninsular Games. They now have 19 gold medals at these Games, and there are still seven more at stake on the last day of SEA Games swimming.

Roanne Ho picked up her first individual SEA Games gold as she demolished the Games record not once, but twice in the women’s 50m breaststroke. She finished the race in 31.45 seconds – more than one second ahead of her nearest rival Phee Jinq En – to better the record she set in the morning heats by 0.55s. Her teammate Samantha Yeo finished 4th with a time of 33.01s.

The breaststroke specialist, who had returned to swimming in 2013 after finishing her undergraduate studies in Australia, was swimming in her first Games since 2009. Then, she placed second in the women’s 100m breaststroke and was part of the winning 4x100m medley relay team.

“It feels really good as the 50m (breaststroke) is my pet event. I did a good time this morning (in the heats), so I actually felt a bit of pressure having to win the 50m (breaststroke) tonight,” said Roanne.

She was surprised by her own record-setting timing, and credited her coach for helping her set a new personal best and National Record. She said, “I have a really good coach. He really trains my mental strength. I used to only focus on my physical aspects, but I think Sergio (Lopez) really makes sure that we focus well and that my mental game is strong.”

“(Before the race), Sergio just told me to shut off my mind and let my body take over because I have done the training, so that’s what I did, and I’m glad it worked out,” she added.

Roanne then put in a solid performance in the 4x100m medley relay to help the team break their own Games and national record, which had been set in the era of textile suits. The women’s team had not lost this race since the 2003 Games, and tonight was no different. The team of Tao Li, Roanne, Quah Ting Wen and Amanda Lim, led right from the start and eventually finished four seconds ahead of their competitors in a time of 4:08.72.

Said Ting Wen of the win, “It feels good. I really enjoy relays. This was our third one I think. We finished all three relays really well so I’m pleased… I’m very happy.”

“We have been swimming for about 10 years together for the relay, so this is not a big deal for us… We knew that we were going to win this medal,” Tao Li added.

Meanwhile it was business as usual for Joseph Schooling, as he picked up his fifth and sixth individual golds of these Games. He’s now eight for eight and will look to score his ninth in the men’s 4x100m medley relay tomorrow night.

Schooling is confident in making it nine for nine tomorrow night, saying, “I’m en route to getting nine (gold medals). I’m fortunate and happy to be almost there. One more day tomorrow and I think I can make it.”

“It would mean a lot to me. That was my goal and expectation for myself. Everyone’s also expecting me to do that, so to actually hit my target tomorrow, hopefully, would be more of a relief than anything,” he added.

Having done eight events in four days, Schooling commented that he was “pretty tired”. He said: “I’ve been feeling tired maybe since like halfway through the day yesterday or even the day before after my two butterfly events. I’m struggling but I can see the finish line so I’ll be okay.”

Schooling went on to thank Eddie Reese (his coach at the University of Texas at Austin), national coach Sergio Lopez, as well as the coaching and backroom staff, saying that he “couldn’t do this without them.”

He clocked 23.49 seconds in the men’s 50m butterfly – the 13th-fastest time in the world this year – to set a new Games record, but failed to better his own national record and personal best (PB) of 23.43s. Quah Zheng Wen finished third in a time of 24.36s, just 0.02s off his PB.

He then cruised to victory in a new Games record time of 2:00.66 in the men’s 200m individual medley (IM). Zheng Wen, who was leading on the butterfly leg, finished second in a new PB of 2:02.22.

Entering the breaststroke leg, Zheng Wen was just 0.03s behind Schooling. “I was catching a little bit of the flu halfway through the meet and I might have stood a better chance if my throat wasn’t so dry,” said Zheng Wen. “But I think that it would have been presumptuous of me to just assume that I had the race in the bag just because we were so close to each other.”

Speaking of Zheng Wen who has been on his tail since the Games started, Schooling said: “It’s good. I actually swim better when this kid’s next to me. He puts me in the hard box and gets me sometimes but we’re good friends, good teammates, good competitors… He’s exactly the kind of guy I want to push me.”

“I think that Joseph’s a really talented swimmer… He’s just someone to beat as I go on my way to greater heights but he’s still my teammate and I’m really happy for his success,” explained Zheng Wen, echoing Schooling’s sentiment.

In the longer distance races, Christie Chue and Rachel Tseng swam 4:23.69 and 4:24.99 to finish 4th and 5th respectively in the women’s 400m freestyle. Vietnamese wonder girl Nguyen Thi Anh Vien won that race in a new Games record of 4:08.66.

Speaking of her performance in her last event of the Games, Rachel said, “I did quite off my personal best for my 400m freestyle, so I’m definitely disappointed, but I’m taking it in my stride… now I can sit down properly with my coaches and discuss what went wrong.”

Looking back on her whole Games experience, Rachel described it as ‘surreal’ and added, “I know I could have done better, but I already tried my best. I couldn’t have asked for more.”

Compatriots Teo Zhen Ren and Benedict Boon, who swam the men’s 1500m freestyle in a timed final in the morning, eventually finished 6th and 8th overall with timings of 16:13:13 and 16:19.28 respectively. That race was won by another Vietnamese, Lam Quang Nhat, in a Games record time of 15:31.03.

Going into the last day of swimming, freestyle and sprint specialist Clement Lim could pull off an upset as he lines up in the men’s 50m breaststroke against 2011 champion and Games record holder, Indra Gunawan of Indonesia (the event was not contested at the 2013 Games). Other swimmers who could pose a threat include fellow Singaporean Lionel Khoo and 100m breaststroke winner Wong Fu Kang of Malaysia.

In the women’s 50m freestyle, Amanda Lim will be gunning for her fourth consecutive win in this event. A victory will put her on par with Joscelin Yeo, who dominated this event from the ’93 to ’99 Games. Quah Ting Wen also looks good for a medal, which could give them their first one-two finish in this event since 2009. However, they will first have to contend with fierce competition from Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.

The third event of the evening will see Quah Zheng Wen and Zach Ong take to the pool for the men’s 50m backstroke. The last time Quah Zheng Wen swam the 50m backstroke at the SEA Games was on his debut. Then, he finished third. This time, he’s in a good position to topple Games record holder I Gede Simam Sudartawa. But don’t discount Zach Ong, Singapore’s other representative, as he could possibly swim his way into medal contention, too.

Featuring in the women’s 200m breaststroke are 100m breaststroke bronze medallist Samantha Yeo and 4x200m freestyle relay gold medallist Christie Chue. They will be up against the likes of the Malaysian duo Christina Loh and Erika Kong, as well as Vietnamese Nguyen Thi Anh Vien and Thai swimmer Phiangkhwan Pawapotako.

In the last individual men’s event, Pang Sheng Jun and Danny Yeo will be looking to win Singapore’s first gold medal in this event since Lionel Lee won it at the 2005 edition. Sheng Jun, who ended his wait for an individual medal at the SEA Games with a silver in the 400m IM last night will definitely be looking to continue his winning streak. Meanwhile, Danny Yeo, who holds the national record in this event, should post a better result if he has fully recovered from his bout of tonsillitis. The duo will be up against Games record holder Daniel Bego of Malaysia, who’s only entered in one event at the Games, as well as his successor, Welson Sim. Also in the fray are Vietnamese Hoang Quy Phuoc, and Thais Sarit Tiewong and Tanakrit Kittiya, all of whom have medalled in this event before.

The last individual event will see Tao Li and Quah Ting Wen battle it out for top honours in the women’s 100m butterfly. Tao Li, who has won the event at every Games since 2007 should be good for her fifth consecutive title, if she can get past the only two obstacles in her way – teammate Ting Wen and Vietnamese ace Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, who signalled her intention of beating her in this event in an interview last night.

To round off the night, the men’s 4x100m medley relay team will do well to shed their bridesmaid tag, having finished second to the Indonesians twice in 2013 and 2009. They also finished second in 2011, but were later disqualified for an illegal changeover. With the Singaporean men finishing ahead of the Indonesians in every 100m event at these Games, this could finally be their year.

Day 5 (Finals only)
Men’s 50m butterfly: Joseph Schooling 23.49 (Gold, Games Record), Quah Zheng Wen 24.36 (Bronze)
Women’s 50m breaststroke: Roanne Ho 31.45 (Gold, Games Record), Samantha Yeo 33.01 (4th)
Men’s 1500m freestyle: Teo Zhen Ren 16:13:13 (6th), Benedict Boon 16:19.28 (8th)
Women’s 400m freestyle: Christie Chue 4:23.69 (4th), Rachel Tseng 4:24.99 (5th)
Men’s 200m IM: Joseph Schooling 2:00.66 (Gold, Games Record), Quah Zheng Wen 2:02.22 (Silver, PB)
Women’s 4x100m medley relay: Tao Li, Roanne Ho, Quah Ting Wen, Amanda Lim 4:08.72 (Gold, Games Record, National Open Record)

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