Diwen Choo hasn't left swimming behind — he's added water polo to it, drawn by the pull of a team sport. Now 16, the right winger has climbed from MSSWP through MSSM and MIAG to a spot on Malaysia's Under-16 national team, and this August he heads to Zagreb, Croatia for the World Aquatics U16 Water Polo Championships (3–9 Aug 2026). Atlas Poolside caught up with Diwen ahead of the trip.
Diwen Choo didn't leave swimming behind. Like most kids on the water polo team, he started out in the pool as a swimmer, chasing times before he ever chased a game — and he still swims today. Water polo came later, as an addition, not a replacement.
“I joined water polo because it's a team sport,” he says. “We train together, play together, win together, lose together. But swimming will always be my first love.”
Two years on, that decision to add a team sport to his swimming has taken him somewhere neither could have on its own — all the way to a World Championship cap.
Diwen's path to the world stage has run through nearly every level Malaysian age-group water polo has to offer. It started with the MSS Wilayah Persekutuan pipeline, before he progressed to MSSM — the national schools championship — where he caught the selectors' eye.
From there it was MIAG, where he was named among the best 15 players picked to represent the national Under-16 squad. Then came the Asian Age Groups, a tournament that doubled as a qualifier: his performance there helped secure the team's spot at the U16 World Championships in Zagreb.
“I played in the Asian Age Group, and from there the Under-16 team was selected for the World Junior World Championship,” he explains.
Three tournaments, two years, one straight line to Croatia.
Diwen plays right wing for the national side, and going into his first World Championship, his expectations are refreshingly grounded.
“I hope that in the World Championship I can get a very good performance and try my best,” he says. It's not about the scoreboard for him — it's about showing up for his team, and coming home with the kind of experience that only a tournament at this level can give a 16-year-old.
Asked what he'd tell a younger swimmer weighing up a switch to water polo, his advice is simple: don't box yourself in.
“Don't only try swimming,” he says. “Try something else too — find more options.”
Before wrapping up, Diwen took a moment to thank the people behind his rise — coach Jackson Khiew, and team captain Teo Zun Jet, who he credits for helping shape his short but rapid journey in the sport.
Two years ago he was just a swimmer chasing medals. This month, he boards a plane to Croatia as one of Malaysia's fifteen — still swimming, now also capped for his country in the pool's team sport.
