Lynette breaks own record

Lynette Lim broke her own national triple jump record for the second consecutive year yesterday, qualifying for the SEA Games in the process.

This was despite the Victoria Junior College (VJC) student not being at peak fitness.

She had her legs taped after suffering a hamstring strain two weeks ago and she was also feeling the effects of the weather.

Her jump of 11.94m - on her fourth attempt - at the A Division final in the National Schools Track and Field Championship at Bukit Gombak Stadium improved on her previous mark of 11.89m, set at the same event last year.

In 2013, she had also broken the national record at the Inter-School meet, when representing Cedar Girls' Secondary.

Siew Lei and Andrea Chong from Hwa Chong Institution came in second and third yesterday, on 11.07m and 10.77m respectively.

Yesterday's victory, which drew resounding applause from the coaches, surprised Lynette.

"I am still recovering from my injuries and have been training more on the long jump than triple jump this year.

"I didn't expect much and the weather made me really tired but my new personal best gives me confidence for the coming SEA Games," she said.

The second-year student has been training with added intensity this year to qualify for the long jump and triple jump in the SEA Games in June, and met the mark for the triple jump.

Lynette, 17, said: "I was not disappointed because I only wish to focus on one event and I managed to set a personal best for long jump. My coach and I will now be focusing on my triple jump for the SEA Games."

John Seem, coach of VJC, said: "Lynette is doing well even with her hamstring strain and she has been pushing hard during training and trying to pass the 12m mark."

"The experience with other elite athletes during the Games will motivate Lynette and be a platform for her to improve and jump further."

For now, she intends to recover from her injuries as she looks forward to making her debut in the Games, where she will be the country's only representative in her event. She said: "I know the pressure is on me but I just want to do my best and hopefully set a new personal best in another competition."

This article was first published on April 21, 2015.
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