MALAYSIAN SILAT CONTINGENT CONTINUES TO SHINE IN 19TH WORLD PENCAK SILAT CHAMPIONSHIP

MALACCA (27 July 2022): The 19th edition of the World Pencak Silat Championship kicked off in style as the Malaysian silat contingent displayed a convincing performance in their respective opening matches in Ayer Keroh, Malacca today.

As the first silat exponent to set foot in the ring, Luqman Laji, who hails from Keningau, Sabah, displayed calmness throughout his match as he captivated the cheering crowd with his astounding combat moves and skills.

The Hanoi SEA Games bronze medallist collected 9.940 points to beat Muhd. Ali Saifullah Abdullah Md. Suhaimi from Brunei and secure a slot in the next stage.

National silat prodigy Mohd. Shukrillah Badrilah also got off to a good start as he used every muscle to collect 9.895 points and defeat Tran Duc Danh from Vietnam, who collected 9.890 points, in the male solo creative category.

Singapore's powerhouse exponent Muhammad Iqbal Abdul Rahman stole the limelight in today's qualifying stages with a scintillating performance against his counterpart Belouad Ayoub from Algeria. The mouth-watering match ended with Muhammad Iqbal collecting 9.950 points to the Algerian's 9.865.

For the record, Muhammad Iqbal once beat Luqman in the semi-finals of the Southeast Asian Pencak Silat Championship, which was held in Singapore last February.

Meanwhile, Vuong Thi Binh, who hails from Vietnam, the land of the "ascending dragon", collected 9.930 points to overcome the challenge of Thitirat Sae-Oung from Thailand, who scored 9.915 points, in the women's category.

The artistic silat session continued to be dominated by the traditional powerhouses of pencak silat as Kadek Nyeneng and Putu Anom from Indonesia booked their spots in the Putra doubles category by collecting 9.940 points to defeat Abhishek Kumar Ghautam and Suraj Sharma from India, who collected 9.265 points.

Forty nations, including debutants the United States, Algeria and Germany, will be vying for honours at the 19th World Pencak Silat Championship, which is scheduled to reach its climax this coming Sunday.