Christy making a big splash in MSSM meet

SHAH ALAM: Kuala Lumpur’s Christy Teh is making heads turn in the MSSM (national schools) swimming championships at the Darul Ehsan Aquatic Centre in Shah Alam.

The 12-year-old already has four gold medals so far in her bag after two days of competition.

The Standard Six student of SJKC Yoke Nam recorded a personal best of 1:10.83 to win her fourth gold in the 100m butterfly on Tuesday.

On Monday, Christy claimed three titles with personal best times in the 50m butterfly, 100m backstroke and 200m freestyle.

Not bad for someone who made her debut in the girls’ 12 and under last year but only went home with a bronze.

Christy said she was introduced to swimming when she turned four by her uncle Alan Tan before joining the state team five years later.

“My main event is the backstroke but I have already won two golds in butterfly.

“I did not have a good debut outing last year but it gave me the motivation to train harder for this year’s championships,” said Christy.

“It has finally paid dividends. I am swimming 12 events here, but I missed the podium in one race. I hope to win more events.

“My ultimate dream is to represent the country but I know to get there I need to work hard. I am willing to put more hours in the pool to achieve my goals,” she added.

Meanwhile, Sarawak’s Welson Sim broke his own record in the boys’ Open 1,500m freestyle by more than 10 seconds.

He clocked 16:02.88, finishing ahead of Selangor’s Yeap Zheng Yang (16:34.42) and Sarawak’s Ngu Jiung Wei (16:53.77).

Hosts Selangor lead the medal standings with a 14-10-8 total ahead of Kuala Lumpur (12-12-7) and Sarawak (7-9-8).