Shuttler Connie Leong made a stunning debut at the Yonex All England Seniors (Masters) Championships 2026, capturing two gold medals and a silver for the Malaysian contingent.
Competing at the Hertfordshire Sports Village in England, Leong topped the Women’s Singles 35+ (30-34 age category) and Women’s Doubles 35+ categories, while claiming the first runner-up spot in the Mixed Doubles 35+.
Six Malaysians participated in the tournament, which attracted 545 global participants, and won three gold medals and a silver medal.
In the Women’s Singles 35+, Leong sailed through a comfortable 21-10, 21-11 win against Sarah Preece from England before beating Scottish shuttler Shona Mackay 21-10, 21-19 in the final to bag her gold.
She continued her winning streak, securing the Women’s Doubles 35+ gold medal with partner Phoon Kah Yee.
The Perak state athletes upset the top-seeded Danish pair of Mai Hasle and Ulla Pedersen 19-21, 22-20, 21-18 after a hard-fought battle.
In the final, Leong and Phoon fought tooth-and-nail to overcome the Irish-Scottish pair of Lauren Au-Jody Barral 21-14, 17-21, 22-20 to win gold.
In the Mixed Doubles 35+ event, Leong came within a whisker of winning her third gold medal.
Partnering with England’s Victor Liew, the duo forced a decider after tying 21-12, 13-21 against their British rivals.
However, they had to settle for silver after losing 19-21 in the final set to Nikita Kolomnin (England) and Kimberley Clague (Isle of Man).
Leong said she was delighted and satisfied with her first All England Seniors Championships.
“The competition is tough and we will have to complete an entire event within a day, playing from four to 10 matches daily,” she said.
Leong started participating in masters tournaments after Phoon encouraged her to compete in the Taiwan Morning Cup.
“Since many former state players are not allowed to play in many senior tournaments in Malaysia, we started participating in international tournaments,” said Leong.
“There, I met other like-minded senior shuttlers who compete internationally.
“That inspired me to take up the challenge to play at the All England Seniors,” she added.
Meanwhile, in the Men’s Singles 70+ category, top-seeded Bruni Garip from Sarawak received a bye in the Round of 32 and then played four matches to win gold.
His toughest match was in the quarter-finals where he was stretched to three sets before overcoming Sweden’s Cheddi Liljestrom 18-21, 21-14, 21-16.
In the final, he defeated Tariq Farooq of Austria 21-13, 21-17, securing his second title after winning his maiden gold medal in the 2023 All England Seniors Championships.
Seasoned campaigner Chan Wan Seong, who participated in the Men’s Singles 70+ and Men’s Doubles 70+, fell short in both events.
Chan only reached the round of 32 after being defeated by Aaliyaru Kunju Abdul Latheef from India, 21-19, 21-19.
Partnering with Garip, the duo fought hard in the Men’s Doubles before losing to Julian Clapp-Robin Wells from England in three sets.
Thus, Chan failed to add to his three silver medals won previously in the All England Masters: Men’s Singles 55+ (2012), Men’s Singles 60+ (2016) and Men’s Doubles 60+ (2017).
