Putrajaya: The National Triathlon Championship, held alongside the Putrajaya Asia Triathlon Cup (ATC Putrajaya), witnessed a remarkable achievement for the Chen family. Siblings Benjamin John and Esther Joy clinched the national champion titles in the men’s and women’s categories, respectively.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Benjamin emerged as the fastest local male racer, completing the triathlon in 43rd place out of an international elite field of 65 participants with a time of 1 hour 1 minute 50 seconds. This result marked an improvement from his third-place finish last year. Benjamin expressed his delight, stating, “I always dreamt of winning this title coming one day, but I never thought it would be today. My sister has always been an inspiration to me. All this time, she has always been at the top but I have never been. I always aspired to be like her one day. So, when I managed to stand on the podium on the same level as my sister, it felt amazing.”

Esther successfully defended her national women’s champion title, finishing 22nd among 46 participants with a time of 1:05:35 at the Putrajaya Water Sports Complex. Her victory marks a promising start to the year as she prepares to qualify for the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand. Esther expressed her ambition to end Malaysia’s medal drought in the triathlon event at the biennial sports games, stating, “I feel like I have made a lot of progress because I no longer have to rely on my running ability during the race. I can now also swim well and with a stronger swimming routine, everything will be better.”

Meanwhile, Swiss champion Max Studer lived up to expectations by topping the elite men’s race at the ATC Putrajaya, while Isla Britton of Canada won the elite women’s category.