One won his first-ever gold medal (actually, his first-ever medal) after eight long years playing chess.
The other won a bronze medal the very first time she entered a chess competition.
And we couldn’t be prouder of both of our Pharmacy chess stars!
Bachelor of Pharmacy (Hons) first-year student Calvin Loh Chee Yang and second-year student Tang Siew Thung walked away with a gold medal and bronze medal respectively at the recent 14th Malaysian Pharmacy Students Association (MyPSA) National Pharmacy Sports Carnival.
A total of 18 universities participated in the event, which included an array of competitions conducted online. The duo had to battle tough competition from the University of Cyberjaya, Segi University and the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) on the way to the top.
This was the second year in a row that we’ve walked away with wins at a MyPSA event, as we bagged the Best Speaker award and emerged first runner-up at last year’s 6th Malaysian Pharmacy Students Association (MyPSA) National Pharmacy Debate Competition.
Calvin said his victory wasn’t easy as his opponents were “extremely good”—recalling that he nearly lost in some positions and had to play carefully to convert them to his advantage.
“I’m glad it was a win. It felt amazing simply because it’s my first medal in chess. Usually, I don’t win medals, only certificates. It’s fair to say that it took me eight years to win my first medal in chess,” he added.
Meanwhile, Siew Thung, who started playing in her free time at the tender age of 12, said her bronze medal was slightly unexpected.
“I’m quite surprised because I’ve never even played in a chess tournament before. It was something I learnt from my friends in primary school because we had some free time after the UPSR exams!”
The carnival also saw our students participating in online gaming and virtual runs that were monitored virtually via GPS.
Once again, our students are showcasing their abilities to excel in academics and co-curricular competitions alike.
These competitions help them sharpen their abilities to perform under pressure while competing with the best in their fields.
Heartiest congratulations to our talented budding pharmacists, and we look forward to more achievements to come!
