LUBOK ANTU: Sarawak continues to intensify its athletes' preparations in the mission to defend the 2026 Malaysia Games (SUKMA) championship scheduled to be held in Selangor in August.

Deputy Minister for Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development Datuk Gerald Rentap Jabu said the athletes' preparations are now entering 'gear three' to face the biennial games.

“For the other sports, preparations and training is currently ongoing. We also have had many training sessions before facing SUKMA, as there are several types of competitions that will be held, especially in Kuching.

"I feel like our (preparations) have already entered third gear," he said when met while visiting the venue of the Sarawak Sports (SUKSAR) IV 2026 karate event at the Lubok Antu IPD Grand Hall on Friday.

Also present were Lubok Antu Member of Parliament Roy Angau Gingkoi, Acting Chief Executive Officer CEO of the Sarawak Sports Corporation (SSC) Khairul Nizam Morshidi and other guests.

Reviewing the scope of training, Datuk Gerald said most athletes have started intensive training both locally and abroad to further improve their performance.

Meanwhile, the second day of the SUKSAR games continued in a lively atmosphere with several sports events offering a large number of medals.

The boxing event scheduled to end today at the Indoor Stadium, Sri Aman Sports Complex offers 11 gold medals up for grabs.

Other sports events contributing medals are cycling (highway racing), karate, weightlifting and taekwondo. -UKASnews