KUCHING: At least 11 athletes from the Southern Zone are being targeted to qualify for the 2026 Malaysia Games (SUKMA) in Selangor, with the Sarawak Games (SUKSAR) serving as a key platform to identify and develop new talent.
Southern Zone Chef de Mission (CDM), Dayang Joanita Azizah Abang Morshidi, said the primary objective remains defending the overall champion title, a task she acknowledged would be challenging given the level of competition.
“Maintaining the championship is never easy, but I am confident our Southern Zone athletes are ready to rise to the challenge.
“They were selected through a rigorous selection process and have undergone intensive training,” she told a press conference on the Southern Zone contingent at the Resident’s Office, Majma Mall, today.
Based on training performances, Dayang Joanita said the zone is targeting dominance in at least five of the 11 sports contested, while stressing that individual athlete development remains a key focus.
“My main priority is to ensure every athlete achieves their personal best, as this will be their ‘ticket’ to represent Sarawak at SUKMA in Selangor this August,” she said.
The Southern Zone had a strong showing at SUKSAR III, contributing 63 of the total 105 gold medals, and has set the same target of 63 gold medals for this year’s edition.
Gold medal hopes have been placed on several sports, including boxing, cycling, petanque, sepak takraw, weightlifting and softball, with petanque emerging as a key contributor after three athletes from the sport previously represented Sarawak. These athletes are also expected to feature in SUKMA 2026.
A total of 11 sports will be contested across three venues. Betong will host weightlifting, cycling, netball and taekwondo, while Sri Aman will stage basketball, petanque, table tennis, softball and boxing. Sepak takraw and karate competitions will be held in Lubok Antu.
Dayang Joanita, who is also the Kuching Resident, added that the Southern Zone remains committed to being the largest contributor of high-quality talent as Sarawak seeks to re-establish itself as a powerhouse in Malaysian sports.
The opening ceremony for SUKSAR will be held in Betong on Wednesday (Feb 4), while the closing ceremony is scheduled for Sunday (Feb 8) in Sri Aman.
