KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia’s swimmer, Khiew Hoe Yean, faces a monumental task as he makes his debut at the Paris Olympics next week, aiming to secure a standout performance for Malaysia’s swimming team.
On paper, the prospect of winning a medal may seem daunting, but Hoe Yean remains determined to break his own national record in the 400m freestyle event.
His confidence stems from several months of rigorous training under world champion Sam Short in Australia.
The Kuala Lumpur-born athlete feels he is in excellent shape to compete with the best swimmers in Paris.
Holding eight national records, including three in relay events, Hoe Yean must push harder than ever.
In the Olympic 400m freestyle, only the top eight swimmers in the heats will advance to the final.
For comparison, his recently renewed national record at the Australian Championships in April, clocking 3 minutes and 48.36 seconds, matched the performance of Venezuela’s swimmer Alfonso Maestre, who clocked 3:48.38 to place 18th at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha in February.
If successful, it will mark a historic moment for Malaysian swimming and serve as personal redemption for Hoe Yean, especially after narrowly missing out on representing the country at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
“I moved to Australia for several months specifically to train with world champion Sam Short. It was a significant sacrifice, but I’m glad it paid off. I achieved my season best and personal best in April, which shows that I’m in top form.
“Training with a world champion has been incredibly rewarding. Despite him being just one year younger than me, he has taught me a lot.
“He showed me his passion for swimming and reminded me why we’re here: to train and compete, not for fame or anything else.
“I just want to swim, perform, and be among the best in the world. That is my target,” Hoe Yean told Scoop.
Joining Hoe Yean, another Malaysian swimmer, Tan Rou Xin will compete for the first time in the Olympic Games, participating in the 100m breaststroke event.
The furthest a Malaysian swimmer has advanced at the Olympics (excluding open water events) was Alex Lim at the 2004 Athens Games, reaching the semi-finals.
At that time, Alex set a national record in the 100m backstroke with a time of 55.22s, securing eighth place in the heats.
His journey ended in the semi-finals where he placed 15th.
Since then, Malaysia has not seen another representative advance to that stage in the subsequent four editions.
The swimming events at the Paris Olympics, scheduled from July 27 to August 4 at the Paris La Défense Arena, will feature 37 gold medals up for grabs – July 16, 2024