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PATTAYA, Thailand : It may not be a winning run like the waterpolo team's 32-year golden reign, but for now at least Singapore are unbeatable in men's triathlon at the SEA Games.
In 2005, Singapore's Cheng Jing Hean dominated the field in the Philippines and won the Games' first triathlon gold medal.
Now, two years later, compatriot Mok Ying Ren has made it back-to-back triumphs for the Republic in Pattaya, Thailand.
On Sunday, the 19-year-old medical student from the National University of Singapore breasted the tape first ahead of rivals George Vilog and Arland Benedict Macasieb of the Philippines to win gold.
Mok's winning time of 2 hours, 5 minutes and 8 seconds was just 24 seconds ahead of silver medallist Vilog.
After the much-publicised controversy over the selection process used by the Triathlon Association of Singapore (TAS) for the Games involving Shaun Phoong and Gino Ng, Mok's gold medal triumph was the perfect tonic for the national sports association.
It was a tough win for the undergraduate, who came out of the water 2 minutes 13 seconds ahead of the two Filipinos but saw his lead wiped out after the duo overtook him 25 kilometres into the bike segment.
Said Mok: "The race was very tactical as the Filipinos worked hard on the bike leg and caught up with me as they had two people drafting on the bike.
"In the run, I caught up with Arland around the three-kilometre mark and Vilog after about six or seven kilometres.
"The run was very tough as I expended a lot of energy to catch up with them."
"I am very happy. I've been cooped up in the hotel since I arrived here and I'll now spend time enjoying Pattaya," added Mok, who will return to Singapore on Tuesday.
Said team manager Jerry Seah: "Ying Ren was a gold medal potential so there was a lot of stress on him.
"But he ran a very smart race and I'm glad we managed to win the gold medal despite being disadvantaged as the other countries had two participants in the competition and they could help each draft."
TAS president Mark Tay could not watch Mok's win as he had business to attend to back home. When contacted, he still rued the fact the TAS' choice of Phoon was rejected by the Singapore National Olympic Council.
"We were looking forward to defending the gold medal, but unfortunately we could not send our best team there," he said. "We expected Ying Ren to win gold and he has come through."
In the women's triathlon, Singapore's Elaine Chan and Jina Woo finished in fourth and seventh spot, respectively.
Malaysia's Kimbeley Yap bagged the gold, while the Philippines' Alessandra Araullo and Maria Melliza Gayle Lucas took silver and bronze, respectively. - TODAY
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