Yu Tian shows that studies and sports can go hand in hand
By AFTAR SINGH
KUALA LUMPUR: Chuah Yu Tian proved that one can excel in studies and sports.
The 19-year-old scored nine A’s to become Bukit Jalil Sports School’s top student in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) last year.
And on Tuesday, she capped her debut in the 15th Asian Junior Athletics Championships, which ended in Colombo, Sri Lanka, by winning the silver medal in the girls’ pole vault event.
China’s Xu Huiqin broke the eight year-old Asian junior record by clearing 4.25m en-route to winning the gold.
The previous record of 4.20m was set by China’s Zhao Yingying in Ipoh in 2004. Yu Tian took the silver with a 3.40m vault while the bronze went to Taiwan’s Liu Yu Yao (3.20m).
Well done: BJSS teacher S. Yogeswari congratulating (from right) Chuah Yu Tian, Tan Hsi Theng and Kuck Sea Theng after they received their SPM examination results last year.
Yu Tian, who is doing her pre-university studies at BJSS, said that she never expected to win a medal in the Under-19 meet.
“It was my first Asian junior meet and I am happy with my effort which is my best this year.
“Winning the silver augurs well for me to further improve my efforts to win a medal in Sukma (Malaysian Games) in Kuantan next month,” said Yu Tian, who won the silver in the Thailand Sports Schools meet in Bangkok in 2010.
Malaysia also won two bronze medals in the four-day meet in Sri Lanka.
Mohd Fahme Zam Zam won the bronze medal in the boy’s pole vault event with a height of 4.20m.
Fahme and Sri Lankan’s M. H. I. Sandaruwan were tied at the same height but the Malaysian won on count back.
China’s Zhang Mei soar to a height of 5.35m to bag the gold while Fuji Daiki of Japan took the silver on 4.80m.
The second bronze was bagged by high jumper S. Navinraj. The Malaysian and three others – Barsham Muamer Aissam of Qatar, Kazakhstan’s Dergachew Yuriy and Taiwan’s Hsiang Chun Hsien – all cleared the same height of 2.16m.
The Qatari and Kazakhstan bagged the gold and silver respectively on count back while the other two athletes were offered bronzes.
Two other athletes Mohd Ajmal Aiman Mat Hassan and Noor Shahidatun Nadia Mohd Zuki, who were supposed to win medals in the meet, however, returned empty handed.
Ajmal, despite clocking a personal best of 13.99 in the boys’ 110m hurdles, only finished fourth while Noor Shahidatun, who has a personal best of 12.99m in the girls’ triple jump, only managed 12.54m in Colombo to finish fourth.
