Amanda Lim breaks the national record in the Women's 50m Freestyle at age 33, Cheng Reagan shatters the Men's 200m IM meet record, and Tedd Windsor Chan sets a U17 national record backstroke split on a historic final night at the 21st SNSC 2026.
The 21st Singapore National Swimming Championships ended on the highest of notes on Saturday evening, as veteran sprint queen Amanda Lim smashed both the meet record and the national record in the Women's 50m Freestyle — a performance that will be talked about long after the pool has emptied.
Amanda Lim: 33 and Faster Than Ever
It was the moment of the championships. Representing Tts Merlions, the 33-year-old Amanda Lim touched the wall in a stunning 24.77 — blowing past the previous meet record of 24.94 that she herself had set just two years ago, and eclipsing the national record in the process. The crowd reaction said everything. Here was one of Singapore's greatest swimmers, past the age when most sprinters have long since retired, still finding new gears. Silver went to Swimfast Aquatic Club's Yeo Chiok Sze (24.98), who dipped under 25 seconds herself, with Tts Merlions teammate Nathalie Ring (25.54) completing the podium.
Cheng Reagan's Championship Moment
If Amanda Lim provided the emotional peak of the session, Chinese Swimming Club's Cheng Reagan delivered the technical highlight. The 18-year-old swept three golds across four days — winning the Men's 400m IM on Day 2, then returning on Day 3 to claim the Men's 200m Backstroke in 2:02.10, before rounding off the meet on Day 4 by demolishing the Men's 200m IM meet record with a 2:02.11 — erasing Maximillian Wei Ang's mark of 2:02.97 that had stood since 2021. Remarkably, his backstroke and IM times were virtually identical, speaking to the consistency and depth of his ability across multiple disciplines. His IM swim was a masterclass in pacing — 26.98 off the blocks, controlled through butterfly and backstroke, before unleashing on the breaststroke and free to come home in a time that signals a major talent arriving. Singapore Swimming Club's Russel Pang (2:04.17) and Aquarian's Ardi Azman (2:04.40) rounded out the Day 4 IM podium.
Gan Ching Hwee Completes a Brilliant Meet
Singapore Swimming Club's Gan Ching Hwee leaves the 21st SNSC as its undisputed swimmer of the championships. The 23-year-old was a force across four events over four days — breaking the 200m Freestyle meet record on Day 2 with a stunning 1:59.44, then returning on Day 3 to win the 400m Freestyle in 4:10.90, breaking her own meet record of 4:12.31 set just last year. She also picked up bronze in the 100m Butterfly (1:01.04) on Day 3. She closed out the meet on Day 4 with yet another gold, winning the 200m Butterfly in 2:14.03, ahead of Singha Swimming Club's Varissara Nopthong (2:20.58) and Aquatic Performance Swim Club's Heather Teo (2:21.67). Two meet records, three gold medals, one bronze — it was a championship performance of the highest order.
Yap Yan Xi Brandon Delivers in the Butterfly
Aquarian Aquatic School's Brandon Yap, who had already won silver in the 200m Freestyle earlier in the meet, stepped up again in the Men's 200m Butterfly, winning gold in 2:00.99 — just the second sub-2:01 clocking in the event at this championship. Korea's Kim Donghyun (2:02.88) and Chinese Swimming Club's Lawrence Lim Zhe Quan (2:05.32) followed.
Megan Yo Tops Women's 200m IM
In the opening event of the session, SwimDolphia Aquatic School's Megan Janice Yo delivered a strong performance to win the Women's 200m IM in 2:18.38, comfortably ahead of Swim Alliance's Julia Yeo (2:20.31) and Korea's Yeseul Hong (2:22.26).
Mikkel Lee Wins the Men's 50m Sprint
Chinese Swimming Club's Lee Mikkel Jun Jie took gold in the Men's 50m Freestyle with 22.24, fending off a strong Korean challenge from Hwaseong City's Baek Inchul (22.72) and Song Imgyu (22.85) — the same Song who had also broken into the medals in the 50m Backstroke.
Distance Events: Nedelko and Rawat Shine
In the Women's 800m Freestyle, Singha Swimming Club's Maria Nedelko produced a gutsy effort to win in 8:59.74, edging out Singapore Swimming Club's En Xi Sarah Sim (9:01.49) — a race decided in the final metres. India's Kushagra Rawat won the Men's 1500m Freestyle in 15:59.67, with Chinese Swimming Club's Nicholas Tan (16:02.12) and Singapore Swimming Club's Avel Chua (16:18.17) taking the remaining podium spots.
Relay Drama: Korea Edges CSC by a Heartbeat — and a U17 National Record in the Mix
The closing relays brought dramatic finishes. In the Men's 400m Medley Relay, Hwaseong City (Korea) won in 3:44.69 — with Chinese Swimming Club S'Pore just 0.09 seconds behind in 3:44.78, making it one of the closest relay finishes of the entire meet. AquaTech Swimming B (3:47.48) took bronze.
The night had one more record to give. Chinese Swimming Club's Tedd Windsor Chan, 17, led off the CSC B medley relay squad with a 56.49 backstroke split — a new Under-17 national record. The 27.52 at the turn underlined just how far the young backstroker has come, and it stands as one of the quieter but more significant marks set across the entire championships.
In the Women's 400m Medley Relay, Singha Swimming Club Thailand claimed gold in 4:21.62, ahead of Chinese Swimming Club S'Pore (4:24.35) and Aquatic Performance Swim Club (4:40.52). Singapore Swimming Club and AquaTech Swimming were both disqualified for early takeovers, adding a note of frustration to the final session for the local clubs.
