Brunei prince sets pulses racing at the Games

Royal contestants: Prince Abdul Mateen and his elder sister Princess Azemah are both part of Brunei’s equestrian polo team.

PETALING JAYA: The SEA Games 2017 is not without hunks, and Brunei’s Prince Abdul Mateen Bolkiah is among them.

He charmed the crowd as he greeted and took selfies with admirers at Putrajaya Equestrian Park on Sunday.

Prince Abdul Mateen, who is sixth in line to the Brunei throne, is representing his country in the equestrian polo events at the 29th Kuala Lumpur SEA Games (KL2017).

He is among the Brunei royals listed in Brunei’s polo team – which include his elder sister Princess Azemah Ni’matul Bolkiah, 33, Pengiran Muda Bahar Bolkiah, 36, Pengiran Muda Abdul Qawi, 43 and Faiq Jefri Bolkiah,19.

The prince won the hearts of many after a video of the 26-year-old royal exiting a tent to greet and take selfies with a crowd of cheering spectators went viral.

The impromptu meet-and-greet took place after the Brunei equestrian polo team’s practice match against Singapore on Sunday evening.

Many women were heard cheering and screaming his name, with some holding placards, when the prince made his way to the crowd.

The smiling prince shook hands and took selfies with the crowd.

“Who knew out of sudden a prince could come out from a tent and walk straight away in front of you,” commented Twitter user @Hanaaa_95.

“Prince of Brunei was so kind. No wonder people all over the world love him,” commented Twitter user @lily_breath.

Several netizens also commented on Prince Abdul Mateen’s good looks.

Prince Abdul Mateen has a strong social media following of 509,000 on Instagram, and he has posted a number of photos since arriving in Kuala Lumpur for the SEA Games.

He has also been featured on several publications, such as GQ Thailand, Elite Daily and Mashable, labelling him as a “hot royal” and “handsome prince”.

The Bruneian polo team will be facing the Malaysian team today.

Thailand’s Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana, 30, will also be representing her country in the dressage portion event of the equestrian competition between Aug 21 and 23.

Our very own Terengganu Ruler Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin bagged a gold medal in the equestrian endurance event at the 2017 SEA Games on Sunday.

See our full coverage of SEA Games 2017