Singapore wins its first ever gold medal in the women's 100m at the Asian Championships.

Thailand's Veronica Shanti Pereira made history for the Southeast Asian nation by finishing first in the women's 100m race at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships.

Sprinter Shanti Pereira celebrates her gold medal in the women's 100m at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships. Photo: AAC

On the Suphachalasai Stadium on the evening of July 14th, Shanti Pereira finished first in the women's 100m race with a time of 11.20 seconds, 19 hundredths of a second faster than Iranian athlete Farzaneh Fasihi and 20 hundredths of a second faster than Chinese athlete Ge Manqi. The 26-year-old runner also broke the Singapore national and Southeast Asian records, which she also held, by 6 hundredths of a second.

Before Shanti Pereira, the most recent Singaporean athlete to win an Asian medal was Rachel Yang, with a silver medal in the men's pole vault in 2007. Shanti Pereira also made history for Singapore by becoming the first athlete from the country's track and field team to win a gold medal at the Asian Championships.

Upon crossing the finish line, Shanti Pereira could hardly believe what she had achieved. On the medal podium, she burst into tears as the Singapore national anthem played. "More than a victory, it's a moment of a lifetime," Shanti Pereira told the Straits Times . "I've won the SEA Games and now the Asian Championships. It's insane."

The Singaporean athlete didn't celebrate for long, as she refocused on the women's 200m race this morning, July 15th. Shanti finished with a time of 24.33 seconds, placing 11th in the qualifying round and securing her spot in the semi-finals tomorrow morning, July 16th.

Shanti Pereira comes from Singapore's school sports scene . She rose to prominence at the 28th SEA Games on home soil, winning the gold medal in the 200m (23.60 seconds) and the bronze medal in the 100m (11.88 seconds). Since then, the 26-year-old runner's performance has improved dramatically as she has continuously trained and participated in major competitions around the world.

Shanti Pereira holds the Southeast Asian records for the women's 100m and 200m races. Photo: AAC — Shanti Pereira holds the Southeast Asian records for the women's 100m and 200m races. Photo: *AAC*

At the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia, Shanti Pereira won a double gold medal in the 100m race with a time of 11.41 seconds and the 200m race with a time of 22.69 seconds – a SEA Games and personal best. She is now aiming for a gold medal at the 19th Asian Games in China.

Southeast Asia has won three gold medals at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships. Prior to Shanti Pereira's 100m gold, Robyn Lauren Brown of the Philippines won the women's 400m hurdles with a time of 57.50 seconds. The Thai men's relay team, featuring prodigy Puripol Booson, won the gold medal in the men's 4x100m relay with a time of 38.55 seconds – breaking the national record.

Thailand is currently ranked fifth overall with one gold, one silver, and three bronze medals. The Philippines and Singapore are tied for eighth place. Vietnam had an unsuccessful performance at this competition, winning only one bronze medal in the women's triple jump through Nguyen Thi Huong and finishing 14th alongside Kuwait and Mongolia.

Hieu Luong

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