SELANGOR: A 19-year-old Iban-Kayan fighter from Bintulu gave Sarawak its first taste of gold at the Malaysia Games (SUKMA) Selangor 2026 after Allexandre Axcell edged Federal Territories’ Thiban Raj 2-1 in the bantamweight final at the Ideal Convention Centre (IDCC) here today.
For Allexandre, the victory also meant changing the colour of the bronze medal he won at the 2024 edition, having returned to SUKMA determined to go one better.
“I am very happy because I managed to change the colour of my 2024 bronze medal to gold this year.
“I trained very hard. I trained and trained until I was exhausted. I wanted to bring home the gold medal for Sarawak,” he told reporters after the final.
Allexandre said he had believed he could win gold even before arriving in Selangor, trusting the preparation he had put in.
“I expected it because I trained hard. I believed I could bring home the gold medal.
“The fighter from Federal Territories is good, yes, but Sarawak is better,” he said with a chuckle.
The final also required a tactical adjustment, with Allexandre switching from the open side to the closed side to counter Thiban’s back-leg attacks.
“My coach told me to switch and play on the closed side. When he brought out his back leg, I would jump in and counter,” he said.
When reporters told him he had become the first Sarawak athlete to win gold at the Games, Allexandre expressed his joy at the achievement.
“I am very, very happy to be the first person to bring home a gold medal for Sarawak,” he said.
His father, Juntan Mujap, and mother, Diana Nyipa, were also present to share in the joy as they watched their son claim the gold medal for Sarawak.
The teenager hopes his victory will inspire the rest of the Sarawak contingent to chase more gold medals.
“To my friends and everyone representing Sarawak, I hope we can bring home many more gold medals,” he said.
And to the children of Sungai Asap, Allexandre had a simple message:
“Hard work will always bear fruit,” he said.
Meanwhile, Zulhafiz added another gold to Sarawak’s haul, defeating Federal Territories’ Ng Kar Weng 2-0 in the Middleweight category.
