On a rather quiet evening, taekwondo exponent Syafiq Zuber gave his all to retain his men’s 80kg gold medal at the Chroy Changvar Convention Centre in Phnom Penh on Monday.
He subdued his Indonesian opponent Naufal Khairudin Osanando 2-1 (7-10, 10-1, 4-3) in the final.
With the victory, Syafiq presented Malaysia’s 30th gold medal. With only one day remaining before the conclusion of the closing ceremony, Syafiq’s gold medal could not have come at a better time.
He dedicated the gold medal to his mum, Salma Shafie, as a belated Mother’s Day gift.
“This medal is for my mother. She asked for a gold medal for Mother’s Day, and I won it. My appreciation and special thanks to my coach, Syed Taufiq Syed Hamid, and the National Sports Institute for helping me prepare for the Games,” said Syafiq.
“I still can’t believe that I won. There was tremendous pressure as it is not easy to defend a title,” said Syafiq, adding that the two months training stint in South Korea helped a lot.
