Thi Oanh Nguyen completed her fourth successive distance hat-trick at the SEA Games and became just the third athlete ever to reach 15 titles in the Games’ history, alongside Elma Muros and Jennifer Tin Lay. The 30-year-old from Vietnam claimed fifth consecutive 5000 metres title before ruling the steeplechase and 10,000 metres final. The accomplished runner swept another triple and was crowned the most decorated athlete in Vietnamese history across all branches of the SEA Games.
Thi Oanh Nguyen, nicknamed “Little Pepper Girl” because of her 1.50-tall figure, registered another historic feat two years ago in Phnom Penh by claiming four titles in one edition, which was only achieved by two athletes, Anat Ratanapol of Thailand (1975) and Burmese star Than Than Lwin (1977).
Thai discus thrower Subenrat Insaeng is noted for another games milestone in Bangkok 2025. Hailing from the southern port city of Surat Thani, she extended her undisputed winning streak in the discus by a 58.86 metre effort, seven metres clear of Malaysian national champion Queenie Ting Ni, who earned a third silver medal. Since 2011, Insaeng has not lost a single SEA final in discus to win eight times as she closes one more step to Jennifer Tin Lay’s nine consecutive titles in shot put. Similarly, Malaysian male discus thrower Muhammed Irfan Shamshuddin enjoyed his seventh back-to-back title with a 60.23-meter SEA record, which was broken after 26 years.
The hosting nation, Thailand, collected 13 gold medals in athletics and celebrated the most sensational athlete at the Games, Puripol Boonson. The 19-year-old first made his name four years ago in the same championships and has risen again in Bangkok. He clocked an astonishing 9.94 in the 100 metres heat to break Asian U20 record and become the first Southeast Asian sprinter to do so. Boonson completed his second sprint double in the 200 metres with a Thai national record of 20.07.
