Tokyo: The hopes of Siw Sing Hie and Siong Mui Hong of delivering the country’s first gold medal at the Deaflympics 2025 here were dashed after they both crashed out in the second round of the women’s singles tenpin bowling event today.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Sing Hie and Mui Hong knocked down 912 pins (six points) and 854 pins (three points) at the Higashiyamato Grandbowl to end their challenges in fourth and fifth positions out of six bowlers in Group C. Ukraine’s Anzhelika Zhukova topped the group with 1,062 pinfalls (15 points), followed by Singapore’s Adelia Naomi Yokoyama with 1,010 pinfalls and 12 points, and Ukraine’s Kateryna Kovalchuk with 965 pinfalls and nine points.

Mui Hong attributed their failure to record good scores to difficulties adapting to the lane conditions. “We had a little difficulty due to the lane’s oily conditions. We tried to make some adjustments, but it was not meant to be,” she explained through a sign language interpreter. Despite the setback, she expressed optimism about the upcoming doubles event, stating, “It’s okay, we’ll close the chapter on what happened today. We’ll look ahead to the doubles event, which is slated for Saturday (Nov 22).”

Both athletes have previously experienced success together, having bowled as a team at the Brazil Deaflympics and securing gold at the Jakarta DEAF SEA Games 2025 in August.