Malaysia hurtle towards 111 gold target and most successful SEA Games ever (Updated)

KUALA LUMPUR: With optimism rising that they are headed for their most successful SEA Games ever, hosts Malaysia have narrowed the chase towards their target of 111 gold and looking strong to smash through the mark as well after another superb day by their athletes.
Securing another 13 today with three from track cycling, double gold from diving, rhythmic gymnastics, lawn bowls and sailing, the home tally rose to 96 gold, 64 silver and 62 bronze. It was also the time for taekwondo fighter Rozaimi Rozali and figure skater Julian Yee to shine with a gold each.
Malaysia's best performance in the biennial Games is 111 gold at the 2001 edition which it also hosted.
A brawl has broken on the medals board with Thailand overtaking Vietnam and Singapore to second place with 53 gold, just one better than the Vietnamese. Singapore are edged down to fourth with 48 followed by Indonesia 31, the Philippines 21, Myanmar seven and as well as Laos and Cambodia one.
The organisers announced that Tuesday's derby for the men's football gold between Malaysia and Thailand will be staged at the Shah Alam Stadium at 8.45pm. The bronze playoff between Indonesia and Myanmar will kick off earlier at 4.30pm at the Selayang Stadium.
World diving champion Cheong Jun Hoong and Jasmine Lai, substituting an injured Nur Dhabitah Sabri, cruised to gold and silver in the women's 1m springboard, and it was the same script in the men's 10m platform for Ooi Tze Liang retaining the gold, his second in the current Games, and teammate Chew Yi Wei finishing for silver.
Fittingly Malaysia lifted the first gold medal at the new Nilai Velodrome with 22-year-old Irwandie Lakasek powering to a rousing gold in the men's scratch race to douse off Thailand's Thurakit Boonratanathanakorn and Thanawut Sanikwathi as track cycling with 13 events opened.
Returning to the velodrome in the evening, Malaysia wiped out the challenge in the men's and women's team races and erased the national men's team mark of 44.725s of Azizulhasni Awang, Josiah Ng and Mohd Rizal Tisin set in Beijing in 2008.
Mohamad Shariz Efendi Mohd Sharin, Muhammad Fadhil Mohd Zionis and Muhammad Khairil Nizam Rasol timed 44.776s for the men's team honours , recovering from a scrappy start but ended with a strong burst to eclipse their Indonesia opponents who took silver on 45.735.
Fatehah Mustafa anchored Farina Shawati Mohd Adnan for the gold in the women's affair clocking 34.671s against Indonesia on 35.211s. In the other women's contest of the day, Ju Pha Som Net collected the bronze in the omnium event.
In Langkawi, Malaysia dominated the men's International 420 and International 470 but the same cannot be said of the women's team that failed to defend the International 470 gold and took silver behind Singapore.
Teenage sailors Muhammad Uzair Amin Mohd Yusof and Naquib Eiman Shahrin shook off a challenge from two Thai pairs to retain the International 420 gold for the hosts with 13 penalty points.
In the International 470 won by Singapore two years ago, Mohammad Faizal Norizan and Ahmad Syukri Abdul Aziz accumulated 17 penalty points for the gold, leaving Thailand and the Philippines to settle for silver and bronze.
Like clockwork, lawn bowls wrapped up seven of eight medals for Malaysia. In the closing singles competition, Muhammad Soufi Rusli beat Lee Yuan Min of Singapore 21-6 in the men's showdown and Emma Firyana Saroji outwitted Brunei's Amaliah Mat Ali 21-12 to win the women's title in a first for Malaysia.
On the second day of rhythmic gymnastics heavily tipped in favour of the hosts which took the opening team title yesterday, 18-year-old Koi Siew Yan defended the all-around event and Malaysia went on to clinch gold number three in the group single apparatus (five hoops).
"Today I did better especially in the hoop event with 16.600 points, it was the highest score that I had ever received so far," said the Pahang gymnast who dedicated her triumph to her parents for their sacrifices and her friends for their support.
Figure skater Julian Yee lived up to form proving his mettle in the men's free skating routine to take gold with 205.43 points and teammate Chew Kai Xiang the bronze with 145.53 behind behind Filipino Michael Christian Marti on 171.63 points.
Rozaimi was awarded the gold in the taekwondo kyorugi below 68 kg event after tying 17-17 against Filipino Arven Alcantara, for Malaysia's third gold from the combat sport.
In equestrian polo, Malaysia will be riding for gold against Thailand in the final on Thursday while Singapore and Brunei tangle for the bronze.
Tomorrow, 25 gold medals will be contested and Malaysia expecting a flurry of gold from diving and the final day of rhythmic gymnastics and a fourth and fifth gold are assured from squash as both the men's and women's singles finals feature a all-Malaysia cast.
Ng Eain Yow and Muhammad Syafiq Mohd Kamal will fight for the men's title while the women's final pits Rachel Arnold against S. Sivasangari. — Bernama