2025 SEA Games
All you need to know about athletics at the upcoming SEA Games
*image taken from SNOC
Southeast
Asian
Games
The Southeast Asian Games is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 ASEAN member countries. In December 2025, Thailand will host the 33rd edition of the regional event. Countries like Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and others compete against each other in Olympic and traditional sports. The qualifying period and the athletics qualifying standards have been published on the Singapore Athletics website.
SEA GAMES COUNTDOWN:
T-9 MONTHS
275 DAYS
by Amir Rusyaidi Osman
We are around 9 months away from the 2025 SEA Games. Is it premature to predict the athletics team that will represent Singapore? Perhaps, but let's give it a shot. Here's how it will work: I will make predictions based on current results and standings of Singaporean athletes.
For this first edition, the "9 months out" edition, I will consider results from 2024. I will take into account our athletes' performances at major games and how they fared against international competition.
There are numerous events in track and field, and at InsideTrackSG, we love each and every one of them. Thus, we will divide the coverage into 7 reports, with each report focusing on a different event group: Sprints, Middle Distance, Long Distance, Hurdles, Relays, Jumps and Throws.
These reports will be released over 2 weeks, giving viewers time to absorb and engage in discussions in our comments section. So, sit back, relax, and let the predictions begin.​​
SEA GAMES ATHLETICS MEDALS IN THE LAST DECADE
TOTAL MEDALS: 41
Sprints - 14 (4 golds, 3 silvers and 7 bronzes)
Middle Distance - 4 (4 bronzes)
Long Distance - 4 (2 golds, 1 silver, 1 bronze)
Hurdles - 7 (1 gold, 2 silvers, 4 bronzes)
Relays - 4 (1 silver, 3 bronzes)
Jumps - 6 (1 gold, 2 silvers, 3 bronzes)
Throws - 2 (1 gold, 1 bronze)
from '15, '17, '19, '21, '23 SEA Games
9 Months Out Part 1
SPRINTS
SPRINTING has long been Singapore’s strongest discipline in athletics. Over the past decade of SEA Games competitions (2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023), Singaporean sprinters have delivered 14 of the nation’s 41 medals (4 gold, 3 silver, 7 bronze). On the men’s side, the 100m, 200m, and 400m national records have all been rewritten in the past ten years, a testament to the rapid evolution of the country’s sprinting prowess. Meanwhile, Veronica Shanti Pereira has obliterated the women’s 100m, 200m, and 400m records in just the past two years, firmly establishing herself as Singapore’s and Asia’s sprint queen. Singapore has produced world-class sprinters before—but this generation might be just as special.
9 Months Out Part 2
HURDLES
Hurdling has long been a bright spot for Singapore at the SEA Games, a discipline where speed meets precision, and champions are forged in milliseconds. Across the last five SEA Games, Singaporean hurdlers have consistently delivered, bringing home one gold, two silvers, and four bronzes—a testament to the nation’s strength in this demanding event. On the men’s side, Ang Chen Xiang and Calvin Quek have redefined what it means to be a Singaporean hurdler. Both are national record holders, both are multiple-time SEA Games medalists, and both are still in their prime. After back-to-back podium finishes in 2022 and 2023, they are primed for yet another strong campaign in Bangkok. For the women, the 100m hurdles is seeing a resurgence. With Kerstin Ong’s rapid improvements, Singapore finally has a contender to challenge the best in Southeast Asia once again. The 400m hurdles, however, remains a work in progress—but with the right development, a new generation could soon emerge.
9 Months Out Part 3
MIDDLE DISTANCE
In the 21st century, men’s middle-distance running in Singapore has often struggled for depth. Until 2025, only one Singaporean man had broken four minutes in the 1500m in the past decade—national record holder Yuan Chow Lui (3:51.10). Meanwhile, the 3000m steeplechase has remained largely untouched, with no Singaporean dipping under 9:30 in over two decades, except for Nabin Parajuli’s 9:27.70 in 2019. For years, Singapore has lacked the firepower to challenge the region in these events—but that tide may finally be turning. On the women’s side, the story is different. Goh Chui Ling has been the heartbeat of Singapore’s middle-distance scene, winning all four of the nation’s SEA Games medals (4 bronze) in the past decade. But a new generation is stepping up—Romaine Soh and 3000m steeplechase national record-holder Vanessa Lee are rising through the ranks, eager to carve their own paths to success.