Yee Chun Leong
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN
NATIONAL wushu athlete Basma Lachkar continues to shine bright.
The 23-year-old will bring home the bronze in the women’s taijiquan and taijijian combined event at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
She tallied 9.723 in taijiquan and followed that up with 9.720 in taijijian to share the bronze with Singapore’s Zeanne Law with matching 19.443 points on Sunday.
Tong Xin of China defended her crown with 19.553 points while Japan’s Saito Shiho took the runner-up spot with 19.473 in a field of 12 contestants at the Aichi Prefectural Martial Arts Hall.
“Winning bronze means a lot to me, especially how much more challenging the preparations that went into this competition behind the scenes were,” said Basma in an interview with BruSports News.
“It was very different compared to the last Asian Games preparations as we didn’t have an opportunity to undergo longer intensive training overseas.
“It was definitely a close one, and sharing the podium with Zeanne after finishing with the same points makes it even more memorable,” she added.
“Being the only female athlete representing Brunei at these Games also makes this achievement particularly meaningful to me.
“I hope that in future, we will see more female athletes representing our country and having the opportunity to compete at high level,” continued Basma.
The wushu team underwent a 17-day intensive training camp in China prior to the Games.
It was short considering they had two months to prepare for last Games in Hangzhou in 2023.
Nevertheless, Basma felt that the hard work paid off considering the short preparation time.
“With limited time, we had to be very focused on what we wanted to improve. Training alongside high-level athletes helped me to improve my techniques,” she explained.
“Although the preparation was short and intensive, I believe my coach and I made the most of the time. I’m happy that the hard work paid off with a bronze medal for Brunei,” added Basma, who won silver in Hangzhou.
When asked on what’s next, she replied: “For now, I’d like to take a moment to appreciate this achievement and recover.
“After that, I’ll have a review session with my coach about my performance and see what we can improve moving forward,” she added.
“I’m grateful for this medal, and it wasn’t an easy journey to keep up especially compare to others that have more resources than we do.
“To me, this medal means more to me than the result itself. It represents the work that people don’t always get to see,” concluded Brunei's wushu starlet.
Meanwhile, her younger brother Walid contested in the men’s changquan event where he recorded 9.493 points.
