Singapore made history at the 2025 SEA Games as 19-year-old karate debutant Marissa Hafezan punched her way to glory, claiming the women’s kumite under 55kg gold — the nation’s first in the sport since 1993. Her victory also marked Singapore’s tenth gold of the Games.
“It feels really magical i cannot believe I made history for Singapore karate and i feel very proud of myself,” Marissa said after her feat.
Hafezan dominated the preliminaries at the Chaeng Watthana Government Complex, defeating the Philippines’ Montalvo Maryanne Jenelle 7-0 and Laos’ Sysoubanthong Manyvanh 8-0. In the final, the 2024 Asian championship bronze medallist held her nerve to narrowly beat Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Dieu Ly 5-3, clinching the historic win.
Despite feeling some stress, Marissa remained singular in her focus and “took it one match at a time, one point at a time”.
The final was a tense affair, with both karatekas cautiously testing each other, leaving the three-minute bout scoreless at the halfway mark.
Then Nguyen landed her first strike to Marissa’s face, taking a 1-0 lead.
With 36 seconds left on the clock, Marissa pulled off a kick to Nguyen’s head for an ippon to give her a 3-1 advantage.
With the clock winding down, Nguyen launched a kick to Marissa’s torso, levelling the score at 3-3.
“We already fought each other which made it more difficult for both of us but I just remained calm, continued being aggressive and fought till the end,” Marissa explained.
Despite a failed review in the final moments, Marissa clinched the win with two successive points, erupting in celebration as she punched her chest in triumph.
Singapore’s last karate gold was won by Neo Ah Suan in the women’s kumite 60kg and above category in 1993, which was also the Republic’s most recent women’s individual kumite medal.
Their last podium finish was at the 2011 edition when Tay Qinyuan earned joint bronze in the men’s kumite under 55kg.
But Marissa’s path to the top step of the podium was far from straightforward as she dislocated her shoulder in April and had to undergo surgery in June.
She credited the support staff who helped her through physiotherapy sessions as well as her parents in the stands, for helping her achieve this monumental win.
Feeling “proud and emotional” while the national anthem rang out during the medal ceremony, Marissa said her next targets will be the 2026 Asian Games as well as the Asian and world championships.
Meanwhile, compatriot Chua Sheng Da finished fourth out of nine in the men’s kumite under 67kg category. Chua entered the repechage round after a 5-1 opening loss to Thailand’s Chanchang Worakrit, but lost in the dying seconds to Manantan John Matthew of the Philippines in the bronze-medal match (2-1).
