Olympic champs and golf phenom are amongst Kingdom’s leading hopes in Vietnam
Thailand are sending out 819 professional athletes to the 31st SEA Games in Vietnam which formally start tomorrow. Here are a few of the nation’s leading stars who are anticipated to shine at the biennial occasion.
Panipak Wongpattanakit
Olympic champ Panipak is among the most significant names at the 31st SEA Games.
The 24-year-old taekwondo exponent was among Thailand’s only 2 professional athletes with podium surfaces at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, together with boxing bronze medallist Sudaporn Seesondee.
Taekwondo star Panipak Wongpattanakit (right) on her method to winning gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.( AFP image)
The Surat Thani native, who declared bronze at the 2016 Rio Olympics, is among the Kingdom’s biggest professional athletes of perpetuity, having actually won golds at all significant occasions.
Apart from her Tokyo gold medal, her glittering collection likewise consists of 2 golds from the world champions, one from the Asian Games and one from the Youth Olympics, to name a few.
Nicknamed ‘Tennis,’ Panipak is the top-ranked fighter in the females’s 49kg department and has actually been unbeaten for many years.
She is the two-time SEA Games safeguarding champ in the classification and anything less than her 3rd gold in Vietnam would be thought about an enormous failure.
Panipak at first planned to go up to the 53kg department at the Vietnam Games.
Nevertheless, the Taekwondo Association of Thailand at first called her in the 49kg department on its list of professional athletes and the hosts did not enable her to alter her weight class.
Panipak was hospitalised for Covid-19 last month however is now completely fit.
Sudaporn Seesondee
Olympic bronze medallist Sudaporn was among Thailand’s only 2 medallists at the Tokyo Games together with taekwondo champ Panipak Wongpattanakit.
The Udon Thani fighter ended up being a home name in her nation after her third-place surface at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Fighter Sudaporn Seesondee, left, in action throughout in 2015’s Olympics.( Picture: AFP)
Sudaporn, who is passionately called ‘Taew’ by the Thai media and fans, has actually likewise won a silver and a bronze at the world champions and a silver at the Asian Games.
Remarkably, Sudaporn has actually never ever won a gold medal at significant worldwide occasions.
Now 30, this might be her finest and last opportunity to win a SEA Games gold medal.
Sanikun Tanasarn
Sanikun, previously Sopita, is among Thailand’s most effective weightlifters, with an Olympic gold medal and a world title.
Sanikun, 27, is a flexible weightlifter. She won gold at the 2016 Olympics in the 48kg department and declared the title in the 53kg class at the 2017 world champions.
Sanikun (then Sopita) Tanasan contends in the 2016 Rio Olympics.( Picture: AFP)
Sadly, she was not permitted to contend in the Tokyo Olympics as the Thai Amateur Weight-lifting Association (Tawa) was prohibited from participating in the competition after a variety of its professional athletes evaluated favorable for prohibited compounds throughout the 2018 world champions.
Sanikun herself was likewise suspended for 2 years from January 2019.
The Chumphon local will contend in the 55kg class in Vietnam and will be excited for redemption.
Ratchanon Chantananuwat
Golf feeling Ratchanon ‘TK’ Chantananuwat declared the Asian Blended Cup in Pattaya last month, ending up being the youngest male gamer to win on among the video game’s significant trips.
The teenage amateur beat a host of specialists in case approved by the Asian Trip and the Ladies European Trip.
Golf enthusiast Ratchanon Chantananuwat plays a shot throughout the Asian Blended Cup last month.
At 15 years and 37 days old, Ratchanon surpassed the previous finest youngest winner mark set by Japan’s Ryo Ishikawa, who was 15 years and 8 months when won the Japan Trip’s 2007 Munsingwear Open KSB Cup.
The young Thai, who studies at Shrewsbury International School Bangkok, likewise ended up being the 5th amateur to win on the Asian Trip.
He has actually not missed out on a cut on the Asian Trip considering that late in 2015.
Ratchanon came close to winning the Singapore International previously this year when he ended up third, 2 shots off the lead.
Puripol Boonson
Teenage runner Puripol burst onto the scene at the National Games in March when he swept the 100m and 200m titles and set brand-new records in both occasions.
The 16-year-old star clocked 10.19 sec to break Thailand’s record of 10.23 sec set by Reanchai Sihawong at the 1998 Asian Games.
Teenage sprinter Puripol Boonson.
In the 200m, Puripol crossed the line in 20.58 sec, breaking the nationwide mark of 20.69 sec set by Reanchai at the 1999 SEA Games.
Breaking Reanchai’s records might be a promise for Puripol as both are Samut Prakan locals.
Thai authorities think Puripol, who stands 1.83 m high, might end up being the very first Thai to run under 10sec over 100m.
His individual finest of 10.19 sec is much better than Malaysian Muhammad Haiqal Hanafi’s time of 10.35 sec when he won the 100m title at the 2019 SEA Games.
Nevertheless, the Vietnam Games will be Puripol’s very first worldwide occasion and he needs to show that “if you suffice, you are old enough.”
