Singapore’s world champion and oldest competitor at upcoming SEA Games gunning for 7th straight billiards gold

SINGAPORE: In the dark of the night, sleep comes easy for most. 

But when he tastes defeat at a major tournament, six-time English Billiards world champion Peter Gilchrist remains wide awake.

He's seen it all, done it all, won it all. But losing still stings, even after decades of competing.

So, while others dream, his mind wanders back to what happened, and what could have been.

"You put on a brave face, you could say: 'It doesn't really matter, it was a small tournament', that sort of thing. You make excuses," Gilchrist told CNA.

"But it's in the night time when you can't sleep ... It shouldn't happen, but it does. You go through everything you got right, what you got wrong."

Although it is part and parcel of being an athlete, defeat always tastes bitter, said Gilchrist.

"I just hate losing, I absolutely detest it. I wish I didn't, I wish I could be like so happy," he added.

"I've said this before when I won a few tournaments. You're always a loser because you lose far more than you win - even the best in the world. So you're always up against that. And the losing hurts far more than the glory of winning."

At the Southeast Asia (SEA) Games, however, Gilchrist has not lost in the men’s singles since 2009.

With six consecutive golds in the event at the Games, he is aiming to make it seven in Hanoi later this month.

The last time the SEA Games were held in Vietnam, Gilchrist was part of the Singapore contingent as the national billiards and snooker coach.

After a stint coaching in Qatar, Gilchrist had just joined Singapore six months prior to the 2003 Games. That year, Singapore's Alex Puan and Keith E would win the snooker doubles gold.

"It was nothing to do with me, they were just fantastic," said Gilchrist.

But one thing he did do