The first gold medal at the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) went to Malaysian diver Nur Dhabitah Sabri on May 8.

She earned 290.45 points in the women’s 1m springboard individual to bag the gold, the fifth of its kind for the athlete since making her debut at the biennial Games in 2013.

Considered the best female diver in Southeast Asia, Dhabitah was selected as the Malaysian contingent’s flagbearer this year.

Born in 1999, Dhabitah has a large collection of medals. Besides her five SEA Games golds, she earned one silver and two bronze medals at the 2018 Asian Games and three bronze medals at the Commonwealth Games. She has also qualified for two Olympic games – Rio 2016 in Brazil and Tokyo 2020 in Japan.

Talking to the press after taking her gold medal at the Games in Hanoi, the 22-year-old hoped her achievement will encourage other athletes to work harder in their competitions.

To succeed, an athlete has to make a lot of sacrifices and face various challenges, she said.

Dhabitah is expected to bag another gold when she competes in the 10m platform synchronised event with her teammate Datuk Pandelela Rinong Ramg on May 11.

Another Malaysian diver, Kimberly Bong Qian Ping, obtained 230 points to take silver in the same event.

Malaysia has targeted 36 gold medals at the ongoing SEA Games, with the diving team predicted to seize eight.

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