She’ll beam with pride
NATIONAL artistic gymnast Tracie Ang blew kisses and waved goodbye.
It was a fitting finale for the 26-year-old when she ended her last SEA Games outing in style by coming out tops in the balance beam to win her first SEA Games individual gold medal at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
Tracie scored 12.867 points for the gold while Indonesia’s Rifda Irfanaluthfi came in second with 12.133.
And naturally, Tracie took her time to soak in the atmosphere.
In her first SEA Games in 2005 in Manila, she won a bronze in the team event.
Tracie has now come full circle as the gold summed up her grit and determination in the sport for more than a decade.
“Winning this event in my last SEA Games is indeed memorable. During training sessions and even during the podium training here, I kept on hitting the apparatus. It was abusing me, ” joked Tracie.
“Every single week I had a hit on my leg or head but I persevered.
“I’m glad to win my first individual gold in my last SEA Games.”
Tracie said the Asian Championships next year would be her last career tournament, as she feels that the time is near to quit the sport that she so dearly loves.
“My body is breaking up. I’ve had three main surgeries. Last year, I had four screws inserted in my fingers and before that, I had two hip surgeries.
“The body deserves a break. After the Asian Championships, I will take a long break and figure out what I want to do in future, ” said Tracie, who recently graduated from the Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) with a degree in communications.
It was also a brilliant day for Farah Ann Abdul Hadi as she ended her campaign in the Games by winning her third individual gold medal.
Yesterday, she took the gold in floor exercise with a score of 12.600 points but not after fending a strong challenge from Rifda, who came in second with 12.333.
