Singapore’s Letitia Sim qualifies for 2024 Paris Olympics with record-breaking swim at Japan Open

SINGAPORE: Singaporean swimmer Letitia Sim secured her qualification for the 2024 Paris Olympics by achieving an impressive time of 1 minute 6.36 seconds in the 100m breaststroke at the Japan Open 2023 on Thursday (30 Nov).

At the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, Ms Sim set a new national record and attained the silver medal, trailing just behind the Japanese swimmer Reona Aoki (1:06.24), while Kanako Watanabe (1:07.16) secured the bronze.

Her exceptional performance has solidified her position as the second Singaporean swimmer to secure a place in the Paris Olympics scheduled for July 2024, following Jonathan Tan’s qualification in the men’s 50m freestyle at the Cambodia SEA Games in May.

The Singapore Aquatics, proudly announced Letitia’s remarkable achievement on Thursday, commending her for surpassing her own national record and personal best in the 100m breaststroke event.

Her outstanding feat not only earned her the silver at the Japan Open 2023 but also solidified her ‘A’ qualification for the 2024 Olympics, said Singapore Aquatics.

Extraordinary year for Letitia Sim

Certainly, 2023 proved to be an extraordinary year for Ms Sim.

She exhibited remarkable prowess by clinching multiple gold medals at the Southeast Asian Games held in May.

Her achievements continued as she secured two fourth-place finishes in the 100m and 200m breaststroke events at the Hangzhou Asian Games.

Additionally, she set a new national record in the 50m breaststroke, securing a commendable seventh place.

Adding to her accolades, in October, she showcased an exceptional performance at a World Aquatics Swimming World Cup event in Berlin, setting two national records in the 200m and 100m breaststroke events.

According to CNA, Ms Sim mentioned her proximity to the “A” cut for a few months but wasn’t certain when or if she would meet the qualifying mark.

However, a successful swim in the morning set a positive tone for her performance.

During the final, her goal was to keep pace with her Japanese competitor, whom she had competed against previously and knew to be a formidable swimmer.

“After the first 50, I had a good feeling, and in the end, I’m really happy to have achieved the ‘A’ cut. It made all the hard work by everyone, including my National Training Centre team and coaches, worth it.”

She affirmed her determination not to merely participate in the Paris Olympics but to give her best performance, emphasizing her ambition to see how far her efforts would take her.

Furthermore, Sim expressed hope for additional Singaporean qualifiers and aimed for the ‘A’ cut in the relay team at the 2024 World Aquatics Championships.

Johnathan Tan secured Paris Olympic spot in 50m Freestyle at SEA Games

Another outstanding Singaporean swimmer, Johnathan Tan, secured his qualification for the Paris Olympics with 21.91 seconds in the 50m freestyle heats during the SEA Games in May.

Tan clinched the gold medal in the event, setting a new Southeast Asian Games record and achieving a personal best time.

It’s noteworthy that the Olympic qualifying time for the 50m freestyle event stands at 21.96 seconds, which Tan surpassed with his remarkable performance.