KUCHING: Rising state judoka Andrew Sia is proving to be a tough giant to slay.
He won Sarawak’s only gold medal at the 51st National Championship held at Tengku Mahkota Ismail Sports School (SSTMI), Bandar Penawar in Johor last Saturday.
It was actually an all-Sarawakian showdown in the final match of the 100kg and above category as Andrew took on his own brother, Samuel.
With a gold and silver guaranteed for the state, Andrew won the final bout through an ippon.
Earlier, Andrew did well to see out challenges by SEA Games-bound exponents Mohamad Ruzaini (SSTMI) in the first round and Abad Hadi (Kuala Lumpur) in the semi-final.
Meanwhile, Sarawak also took a bronze through former Sukma gold medallist Brenton Sim in the 100kg and below category.
Team manager Nyam Sze Yuang was full of praise for the state judokas especially the Sia brothers.
“They are showing huge potential and I am also satisfied with the overall performance of the state team. It was a good exposure for us,” he said.
The Sarawak Judo Association (PJS) sent seven judokas to national championship which started last Friday.