Year 12 British International School, Phuket (BISP) student Wong FuKang became the first Malaysian to ever win gold at the Commonwealth Youth Games, currently being held in the Pacific nation of Samoa, on 8 September, as he raced to out-touch some tough competition from England and South Africa in the Mens 100m Breaststroke.
FuKang led from start to finish, turning in a 29.7 at the 50m mark and held on strong with his competitors closing in on him fast.
The time of 1:03.36 was some way off his personal best, however it’s a been a long road of competition since breaking the 15 year-old Malaysian record, and Olympic Qualifying standard, back in March of this year.
On 9 September, FuKang added to his medal tally – and burgeoning reputation in the pool – by racing to the gold in the 50m Breaststroke as well, having been ranked 2nd after the morning’s qualifying swim. A few adjustments to his race strategy and he took another gold for Malaysia in 28.92 seconds.
In the next day’s competition, FuKang swam hard to take silver in the Mens 200m Breaststroke, in a new personal best time of 2min 18.18.
Fukang swam a very calculated and even split race, finishing strongly, and pulling ahead of 3rd and 4th position with 50m to go, but the English swimmer Edward Baxter was a clear leader winning in 2min 15.8.
FuKang’s stellar swims in Samoa have netted him 2 Golds and 1 Silver from this Commonwealth Youth Games, and has proved yet another incredible experience for the young high school student, an integral part of the BISP JSA Swim Academy.
Before this competition, Malaysia had never before won a medal at the Commonwealth Youth Games – now thanks to the young man based at British International School, Phuket, they have 3.
For more information on the BISP JSA Swim Academy, visit bisphuket.ac.th/bisp-jsa-swim-academy, follow their Facebook page at facebook.com/swimphuket or contact Head Coach Simon Jones: aquatics@bisphuket.ac.th
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