And Tia’a makes it four

Gwangju-bound: Tia’a Faang Der clocked 2:00.77 to finish third in the men’s 200m butterfly at the Singapore Open yesterday.

PETALING JAYA: Gwangju, here I come!

National swimmer Tia’a Faang Der has booked his ticket for his maiden World Aquatic Champion­ships in South Korea next month after beating the men’s 200m butterfly qualifying mark en route to a bronze-medal finish at the Singapore Open yesterday.

The 21-year-old clocked 2:00.77 to finish behind winner Sajan Prakash of India (1:58.25) and Thailand’s Wine Wongcharoen (1:59.80).

Faang Der’s effort saw him make the B qualifying cut of 2:00.80.

The Johor-born lad is now the fourth national team member to qualify for the biennial world meet.

The other three who have qualified on merit are Welson Sim, Phee Jinq En and Chan Jie. Chan Jie also booked his ticket at the Singapore Open with a strong showing in the 100m butterfly on Friday.

Meanwhile, Tern Jian Han fell short in his bid to make a clean sweep of the men’s backstroke titles as he settled for silver in the 200m race.

The 24-year-old Jian Han touched the wall in 2:05.19 and was beaten to the gold by homester Advait Page (2:04.48).

Another up-and-coming Malay­sian swimmer Khiew Hoe Yean claimed bronze after clocking 2:07.75.

Jian Han had earlier triumphed in the 50m and 100m events – but none of his times were good enough for him to book the trip to Gwangju.

Jordan Yip also contributed a medal on the final day of the meet by winning bronze in the men’s 200m individual medley.

The 20-year-old posted 2:06.70 to pip compatriot Sebastian Soon (2:08.78) to the podium.

Three-time SEA Games gold medallist Pang Sheng Jun of Singapore won the event in 2:03.32 as Darren Chua completed a 1-2 finish for the hosts after registering 2:04.43.