SEA Games 2025: Letitia Sim sets 200IM Games Record as swimmers add to haul

Letitia Sim broke the women's 200m medley SEA Games and national records on Dec 12. Photo: SportSG/ Andy Chua

After spending the earlier part of the day running in and out of the toilet, Letitia Sim was not expecting much ahead of her 200m individual medley final. 

But the 22-year-old did not let an upset stomach get in her way of smashing the SEA Games and national records to win her third straight gold in the event. She clocked 2min 13.42sec to eclipse the previous Games record of 2:13.53 set in 2015 and erase her own national mark of 2:13.76.

 Letitia Sim en route to winning the women's 200m medley at the 2025 SEA Games. Photo: SportSG/ Andy Chua

While she was delighted with the unexpected result, Sim is already looking at what she can do better next time.

She said: “I’m pretty proud of how I handled that race, especially since I wasn’t feeling good in the morning. I’m glad I was able to pull through and showcase my hard work tonight.

“It just gives me a lot of confidence. With a lot of these races, everyone focuses on the positive side, which is good, but I like to question a lot about where I can improve and what’s holding me back from going 2:12. I just want to keep pushing forward and strive for better. I’m really glad I’m on top in South-east Asia, but I want to be at the top comparatively with the entire world too.”

Teammate Quah Jing Wen was fourth in 2:17.42.

Mikkel Lee celebrating his win in the men's 50m freestyle. Photo: SportSG/ Andy Chua

Meanwhile, Mikkel Lee also continued his blistering form with victory in the men’s 50m freestyle in a personal best time of 21.92sec, just 0.01sec off the Games record set by teammate Jonathan Tan in 2023. 

Having come to Bangkok lacking confidence, his double in the 50m and 100m freestyle events has motivated him to continue working hard. 

He also credited the people around him for encouraging him when he felt down. 

He said: “We changed the training process in the lead-up to the meet and there were some checkpoints that I felt were off, so that’s when I was a little bit shaken. In those moments, having a good team around you keeps you grounded and helps you focus on the right things.

“Yesterday brought my confidence back and showed that I’m on the right track and I have to just trust the process and all the hard work I’ve put in.”

Teong Tzen Wei clocked 22.42sec to win the silver for his first medal here.

Mikkel Lee and Teong Tzen Wei completed a Singaporean 1-2 in the men's 50m freestyle. Photo: SportSG/ Andy Chua

Reflecting on his race, Teong said: “You don’t come here wanting to be second, but that’s just how it is. When you come here, you need to have that persona, the mindset that you’re better than everyone else. 

“But you also need to have the maturity to come away from that and know that you can’t win it all and how you’re going to come back with a better mindset, better body and come back stronger.”

Gan Ching Hwee won the women's 200m freestyle for the third consecutive time. Photo: SportSG/ Andy Chua

Paris 2024 Olympian Gan Ching Hwee, 22, won her first gold medal in Bangkok with a personal best of 2:00.02 in the women’s 200m freestyle. Quah Jing Wen clocked 2:04.29 to finish sixth.

While she was disappointed not to go under two minutes, Gan is hoping for more personal bests in her upcoming 400m and 800m freestyle races. 

She said: “I gave everything I had in the tank today, but the moment I touched the wall, I was quite disappointed because for the longest time, I’ve been wanting to break this two-minute barrier. 

“It’s a very elusive barrier that I, for years, have not been able to touch. To see that I was just a hair away from it, that was quite heart-wrenching because I feel like my training has shown otherwise; I’m better than the timings I did today. But we analyse each race and keep moving forward.” 

Several SEA Games debutants posted creditable results too. Tedd Chan, 16, set a national Under-17 50m backstroke record with a 25.56sec swim in the final, finishing fourth behind silver medallist Quah Zheng Wen. 

In his first SEA Games race, Chan Chun Ho won the 100m breaststroke silver in 1:01.72 ahead of Maximillian Ang (1:02.35). 

Maximillian Ang (left) and Chan Chun Ho won the bronze and silver medals respectively in the men's 100m breaststroke. Photo: SportSG/ Andy Chua

Levenia Sim finished seventh in the women’s 50m backstroke final after touching the wall in 29.86sec. Fellow debutante Julia Yeo, 15, clocked a personal best of 30.26sec to finish 10th in the heats. 

Tedd was proud of his achievements on his SEA Games debut and credited his seniors for their advice on remaining calm. His result has also motivated him to work even harder as he hopes to win a SEA Games gold and represent Singapore at the Olympics.

He said: “I was a bit nervous because this is my first SEA Games but after the heat, the older ones told me to just relax and have fun. The outcome didn’t really matter for me because I felt that as long as I did my best, I’ll be happy. 

“I almost got third but it’s OK, we learn and we can definitely do better. I got a new personal best and a new Under-17 record, which is a good milestone for me, so I’m quite proud of myself.” 

In the final event of the evening, Singapore's Glen Lim, Ardi Azman, Jonathan Tan and Quah Zheng Wen clinched bronze in the men's 4x200m freestyle relay after clocking 7:21.13. 

Team Singapore leads the way in the pool after two days of competition, with 14 medals (five golds, five silvers, four bronzes). 

The 33rd SEA Games are held in Thailand from 9 to 20 December 2025. For the latest Team Singapore coverage and news, follow Team Singapore on their social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) or visit the official Team Singapore website.