Kota Kinabalu: Sabah swimmer Emmanuel Loh Yung Ming made waves at Sukma XXII Selangor 2026 when he clinched gold in the men’s 50-metre breaststroke at the Darul Ehsan Aquatic Centre.
His victory carried historic weight for Sabah, ending an almost eight-year drought in Sukma swimming. The last gold came at Sukma Perak 2018, when Hollymax Bell won the men’s 100m butterfly in 56.55 seconds.
That meet saw Sabah finish with one gold, one silver, and one bronze, but the State’s swimmers were unable to replicate the feat in Sukma 2024, finishing without a gold medal.
Emmanuel’s triumph has broken the dry spell, restoring Sabah’s presence at the top of Malaysian swimming.
The 17-year-old from Kota Kinabalu touched the wall in 29.24 seconds, edging out his rivals in a final featuring eight competitors. His time improved on the 29.43 seconds recorded during the morning heats, a margin of 0.19 seconds that proved decisive in the sprint event.
The victory added to his medal tally, bringing his total to three in the opening days of competition; one gold and two bronzes. He had earlier secured bronze in the men’s 100m breaststroke and contributed to Sabah’s mixed 4x100m medley relay team, which finished third on August 20.
Prior to the competition, Youth Development, Sports Advancement and Creative Economy Minister Datuk Nizam Titingan was present to encourage the athletes, including Emmanuel.
The young swimmer later credited the minister’s words for boosting his confidence.
“It was a pleasant experience speaking with Datuk Nizam. His encouragement and advice to stay focused and give my best really motivated me.
He instilled in me the belief that I could win gold; and true enough, I did. I am truly grateful for his support and the confidence he gave me,” Emmanuel said.
His father, Matthew, revealed that the family made significant sacrifices to support his journey and to go this far.
Matthew spoke about the unseen challenges behind an athlete’s success.
“People often only see the celebration when medals are won, but not the years of training, the time, effort, and sacrifices that go into it. The hardship endured is real, and it takes a lot of commitment,” he said.
Emmanuel’s mother, Regina added: “The most important thing is for him to focus on the goal to win for Sabah and Malaysia later on.
His success reflected not only his individual talent but also his role in strengthening Sabah’s team performance. His achievement was guided by coach Tammy, State head coach Elvin Chia, national head coach Michael Kinross the Sabah swimming squad’s support staff.
He expressed gratitude to those who supported him, acknowledging the Sports Minister for his encouragement, his coaches, Daniel Lee of Sabah Aquatics Sports Association as well as his parents, family members, friends, and the Majlis Sukan Negeri for their untiring support.
He also shared his aspirations and hope that his achievements and recognition in sports will open the door to scholarships, allowing him to further his studies while continuing to represent Sabah with more gold medals at future Sukma competitions.
He offered strong advice to upcoming athletes: “Do not give up, even when that feeling of doubt comes to disturb you.
Just focus on the goal, keep improving, and don’t worry about other opponents, concentrate on self-improvement.”
