Sarawakian MMA duo set for Asian competition after Cambodia exploits

KUCHING (July 18): Two Sarawakians have qualified for the 6th Asian Indoor Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) to be held in Bangkok, Thailand in November.

Kelly Pang Sze Teng and Teo Zhi Hao put up creditable performances at the 2nd Asian Mixed Martial Arts (AMMA) Championships in Cambodia on July 11-13, which was the qualification event for AIMAG.

Pang, who competed in the traditional women’s 69kg, defeated Sanvita Kun of Cambodia in the final to bag the gold while Teo gained valuable experience in his two bouts against veteran fighters.

“I am very happy to have achieved my target of winning gold in this championship. It was also a good improvement for me as I won silver at the 1st AMMA competition in Thailand last year,” said Pang.

“I would like to thank my coach (Tsan Nieng Khai) for giving me this golden opportunity to represent the state and country in this competition. He has been consistently training me and Teo to be better fighters.”

Teo lamented the decision of the referee for an early stoppage in the first bout against his opponent from Chinese Taipei and in the second bout against the Cambodian opponent for the calculation of points by the side judges.

“Competing in this championship is a very good experience for me and will help me to further improve myself in the future,” he said.

Meanwhile, Tsan showered praise on his two charges.

“I am proud to see that Pang and Teo have improved and excelled in this championship,” he said.

Apart from coaching the two fighters at the 2nd Asian AMMA Championship, Tsan was also the tournament director and head chief referee as well as lecturer for the referee-cum-judging course attended by 47.

Over 100 fighters from 14 countries participated in the three-day championships.