SINGAPORE: With Olympic champion Joseph Schooling hanging up his goggles last year, attention has turned to Singapore’s next generation of brightest golden hopefuls at the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
Among them is rising long-distance star Gan Ching Hwee.
The 22-year-old will head to Bangkok this month targeting a third straight sweep of her individual freestyle events – the 200m, 400m and 800m.
Over the past few years, Gan has blossomed into one of the world’s top distance swimmers, with stellar outings at both the Olympics and World Aquatics Championships.
Having already collected 11 SEA Games gold medals across four editions, she enters the Thai capital with a renewed sense of confidence.
Being based in Singapore this time – unlike previous Games, when she trained in the United States – has reduced the strain of jet lag and weather adjustments.
Gan said the experience she has gained on the world stage has transformed her mindset.
“My pretty positive experiences at the major games in the past few years, it's really boosted my confidence and my self-belief,” she said.
“I think that mental aspect is a very important part of being an athlete, and as I grow and I enter the more senior levels of competition, it's a very crucial element, on top of the physical aspects – swimming and training.”
Aside from her three individual events in Bangkok, she could also feature in relay events and the open water discipline.
With the 1,500m off the slate this year, Gan’s training is now focused on shorter distances.
Her coach, Eugene Chia, said preparations for Bangkok have zeroed in on technical and speed improvements to get her ready for a wider repertoire of events such as the 4x100m and 4x200m relays.
At the World Aquatics Championships in
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