SIBU (Sept 5): Sarawakian judoka Voon Xue Jia is far from satisfied with her growing international bronze medal collection following the Thailand International Judo Championships last weekend. This was her third bronze medal from as many international competitions this year, starting with the South East Asia Judo Championship last January in Penang and then the Hongkong International Judo Tournament in March. In Nakhon Pathom, Thailand, the 24-year-old poster girl of Sarawak judo had hoped for at least a top-two finish after qualifying for the semi-final bout in the Women's U-63kg category. However, Voon admitted she felt under intense pressure as she desperately wanted to win. "I made some silly mistakes, which allowed my opponent to control my movement and I only have myself to blame for the poor performance and for losing concentration when it matters most," she said when contacted. Voon said the defeat was a bitter lesson, but it would spur her to aim higher for the coming Kano Cup International Judo Championship in Penang in the next two months. "I will work hard for it and hope to shine at the event," she said. A slow starter, Voon only took up judo when she was in Form 1. "My interest in the sport can be attributed to my elder sister, who was also a judoka and it didn't take long before I embraced the sport." Since then, Voon has been focusing on polishing her style of play and improving her strength, energy, and power, which play a crucial role in judo. Her best result has been the gold medal she won in the U-57 kg category of the National Senior Judo Championship in Terengganu last year. Last month, she led six other Sarawakian judokas to the Taipei Asian Championship but none returned with a medal. However, she said they gained valuable experience from the competition as well as training stints at Taipei University and Taipei Police Department. Sarawak Judo Association (PJS) secretary Ngiam Sze Yuan commended Voon for her credible performance in Thailand and for hitting her target of a bronze medal. "She could have returned with a better result had she not fumbled in the semi-final match but sometimes, it's hard to predict," he said. He added it is never easy to fight against seasoned judokas from other Southeast Asian countries. Malaysia sent a full team of 11 men and six women for the championships in Nakhon Pathom, including a kata team. The country's sole gold medal came from Amir Daniel in Men's U-81kg, while the other five bronze medals were from Nur Humayraa (Women's U-48kg), Chua Siew Imm (Women's U-52kg), Siti Noor Aisyah (Women's U-70 kg), Muhammad Nur Iman (Men's U-55kg), and Wong Yi Xuan/Ng Yi Yuan (Men's Kata team). The other 13 countries that took part in the competition were Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Singapore, Laos, Taiwan, Korea, France, United Arab Emirates, and Bhutan.
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