Tashkent: National karate ace C. Shahmalarani has done the nation proud by winning a silver medal in the women’s kumite under 50 kilogrammes (kg) at the 2025 Asian Karate Championship in Tashkent, Uzbekistan today. The achievement is all the more meaningful as it marks Malaysia’s first silver medal in the kumite discipline in 13 years.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Shahmalarani’s hopes of clinching gold were dashed after the 26-year-old athlete lost in the final to home crowd favourite Gulshan Alimardanova 1-7 in the gold medal bout held at Yunusobod Sports Complex. ‘This win is deeply personal, it’s more than just a medal, it’s a breakthrough. Fall down seven times, stand up eight, they say! It literally took me seven AKF appearances to finally break a 13-year drought and bring Malaysia back to an AKF final,’ Shahmalarani expressed in a Facebook post.

She further shared that this success was not achieved overnight. It required years of perseverance, underscored by five early exits from the competition, each serving as a lesson in patience, grit, and growth. After numerous setbacks, she has finally reached the moment she has been striving for and is motivated to continue her pursuit of excellence.

Shahmalarani stated that the achievement has ignited her spirit to strive for even greater success. She expressed her relentless ambition, saying, ‘I’m always hungry for more success and will chase greater glory – because the ultimate goal is to build a lasting legacy.’

For the record, former national karateka R. Loganesha Rao won silver in the men’s kumite under 55 kg at the 2012 edition, also held in Tashkent, while Malaysia’s last gold medal came in 2011 through Mohd Hatta Mahamut in the men’s kumite under 84 kg in Quanzhou, China.