By DayakDaily Team
SELANGOR, Sept 4: Rusdianto Rusmadi wasted no time in sending an early signal ahead of his bigger mission on the international stage after winning gold in the men’s 400m freestyle S8 at the 22nd Para Sukma Selangor 2026, setting a new national record in the process.
According to the Sarawak Public Communication Unit (Ukas), the 33-year-old swimmer not only emerged champion but also improved his personal best from 5 minutes 24 seconds to 5 minutes 20 seconds—a four-second improvement that marks a new milestone for him in the event.
More importantly, the time came at the right moment as Rusdianto builds momentum towards the Para Asian Games in Nagoya, Aichi next month, having already met the qualifying requirement with the stipulated qualifying time.
“My previous PB (personal best) was 5 minutes 24 seconds, and this time I managed to bring it down to 5 minutes 20 seconds. Perhaps I can break it again at the next competition,” he said when met by the media after the medal presentation ceremony for the men’s 400m freestyle S8 event here today.
The silver and bronze medals were won by Sabah’s Shahafiq Abdullah and Selangor’s Muhammad Aisy Mazlan respectively.
Rusdianto is also targeting a total of six medals at the Games, including those from relay events, with two more events scheduled today.
Meanwhile, another Sarawak athlete, Ng Jia Tak, also secured a place on the podium after contributing a bronze medal in the men’s 400m freestyle S9 event.
Starting from Lane 8, Jia Tak finished the race with a time of 6 minutes 37 seconds.
As of 11.44am, Sarawak has placed fourth in the Para Sukma Selangor 2026 medal tally with 16 medals comprising three gold, six silver, and seven bronze.
In first place is Sabah with 32 medals comprising 12 gold and ten each for silver and bronze, followed by Selangor with 22 medals (10 gold, five silver, seven bronze) and Johor with 13 medals (five gold, three silver, five bronze). — DayakDaily
