Two Johor karate athletes overcome ACL injuries to win individual kumite gold at SUKMA 2026, boosting the state’s karate dominance in Shah Alam.
JOHOR karate exponent A. Leidaneswaran capped his final Malaysia Games (SUKMA) appearance with a gold medal today, overcoming pain from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury to triumph in the men’s under-67 kilogramme (kg) individual kumite.
Competing at the Ideal Convention Centre (IDCC) here, Leidaneswaran said the victory was particularly meaningful after the injury to his left leg forced him to halt his participation in overseas competitions.
The 24-year-old described SUKMA 2026 as his “last dance” for Johor, having previously settled for silver at the Games in Sarawak.
“This is my last SUKMA, my ‘last dance’ for Johor. So I had to give my best.
“I have suffered a lot, been injured and have even been scolded, but I am grateful that my parents, coaches and all my teammates have always given me support and motivation,” he told reporters after the event today.
Leidaneswaran said the most challenging moment came when he received a final warning during his bout against Sarawak’s Muhammad Haziq Mohammad Shamsudin, as another offence would have cost him his chance of winning gold.
“Earlier, I only thought that I had sacrificed for this moment over the past few days. So I had to give everything. Even though I was injured, it didn’t matter. I just wanted to win and make my parents, coaches and teammates proud,” he said.
Despite doctors advising him to rest and undergo surgery earlier, Leidaneswaran said he continued training and preparing for SUKMA, choosing to postpone treatment until after the Games.
“Sometimes when it hurt, I just endured it and didn’t tell anyone because if I told my coach, he would ask me to rest. I didn’t want to rest because when my teammates were training, I also wanted to train with them,” he said.
Leidaneswaran is scheduled to undergo surgery this October for the ACL injury in his left leg, but admitted competing while injured was far more challenging than training while managing the pain.
“Competing in pain is more difficult. But now the joy of winning gold is much greater than the pain I felt,” he said.
Johor also secured another karate gold through S. Vaissnavi, who won the women’s under-50kg individual kumite after defeating Federal Territories representative R. Tharshinny.
Vaissnavi, who previously suffered an ACL injury to her right knee, also fought through the pain to ensure the gold medal went to Johor.
