Young athletes' performance at SEA Games signal ‘bright sporting future’ for Singapore: Official
Singapore's athletes ended their SEA Games campaign with a medal haul of 52 golds, 61 silvers and 89 bronzes.
Dr Su Chun Wei, High Performance Sport Institute Chief speaking during the Team Singapore wrap-up press conference at The Grand Fourwings Convention Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand on Dec 20, 2025. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
This audio is generated by an AI tool.
BANGKOK: The performances of Singapore’s youngsters at the 33rd SEA Games bode well for the future, said High Performance Sport Institute (SSI) chief Su Chun Wei on Saturday (Dec 20).
Speaking at a press conference at the end of the campaign, Dr Su said that he would sum up Singapore’s Games performance as a “dazzling display of youthful promise and veteran excellence”, and added that the young sporting talents signal a “very bright future” for Singapore sports.
Dr Su added that there were “momentous performances” from many emerging talents, including 14-year-old swimmer Julia Yeo and 12-year-old sailor Anya Zahedi.
Pointing out that about 60 per cent of the country's athletes were making their debuts, he added that half of them brought home medals.
“This ... underpins our future for sporting success, especially as Singapore gets ready our push towards SEA Games 2029 which is held back at home. And we want to have extraordinary performances by Team Singapore,” said Dr Su.
“This SEA Games provides us with invaluable exposure for these emerging athletes, building the foundation for future success.”
Singapore ended their Games campaign with a medal haul of 52 gold, 61 silvers and 89 bronzes, fifth on the overall medal table. There were also 12 Games records, 11 national records and 29 personal bests.
At the 2023 Games, Singapore finished with 51 golds, 43 silvers and 64 bronzes.
This time round, Singapore fielded its largest SEA Games contingent, with 926 athletes competing across 48 sports, including 548 debutants.
The contingent had an overall median age of 23 years old, while the debutants had a median age of 21 years old.
Notable breakthroughs at the Games included the Men’s 3x3 Basketball team securing Singapore’s first SEA Games silver in the sport. Calvin Quek (400m hurdles) and diver Avvir Tham also won gold medals for the first time in 60 years in their respective events.
Among the headline acts for Singapore were sprinter Shanti Pereira, who became the first Singaporean woman to retain the 100m and 200m titles, and swimmer Gan Ching Hwee, who swept the 200m, 400m, 800m freestyle events for the third consecutive time.
Swimmer Letitia Sim ended the Games as Singapore’s most bemedalled athlete, with five golds and five Games records.
"Over the past few weeks, we have witnessed numerous inspiring moments and performances that truly reflect the dedication, resilience, and immense potential of our athletes," said Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) secretary-general Mark Chay.
"Alongside these triumphs, there were also valuable lessons learnt. These moments of reflection are critical as we continue our collective effort to raise standards across our entire sports ecosystem."
Catch the 33rd SEA Games Thailand 2025 LIVE on mewatch. Sign in for free at www.mewatch.sg/thailand2025 to catch all the action, and follow the Mediacorp Sports TikTok, Instagram and Facebook for more sports updates!
