SEA Games: Malaysia Strike Historic First Kabaddi Gold In Men’s 3 Stars Event

BANGKOK, Dec 18 (Bernama) -- Malaysia made history by winning their first-ever Kabaddi gold medal at the SEA Games after the men’s team defeated Thailand in the 3 Stars event gold medal match at the Rajamangala University of Technology Rattanakosin here, Thursday night.

The triumph came with the Malaysian men’s team dominating proceedings to defeat Thailand 28-16 and secure the nation’s first-ever Kabaddi gold at the 33rd SEA Games, where the sport is included for the first time in the history of the Games.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian women’s team narrowly lost 22-23 to Indonesia in the 3 Stars gold medal match, thus settling for the silver medal.

The Kabaddi 3 Stars event is a short-format team competition designed to be faster and more intense than the standard kabaddi format.

In this event, each team fields three players on court instead of the usual seven and competing on a smaller playing area, while the matches are typically shorter in duration, placing greater emphasis on speed, agility, individual skill and quick decision-making.

For the record, the national kabaddi squad are aiming to bring home two gold medals here.

-- BERNAMA