Sukma: Having to go through two finals after protesting the referee's decision, Sarawak silambam athlete Nur Aleesya Zahierah Sali proved that her fighting spirit is not easily extinguished when she finally grabbed the gold medal in the women's 60 to 70 kilogramme (kg) poruthal event at the 2026 Malaysia Games (SUKMA) today. The 17-year-old athlete initially had to settle for a silver medal after losing 31-33 to Penang representative, B. Dharnisha, before the Sarawak camp lodged a protest regarding the decision at the Subang Jaya City Council Stadium (MBSJ), Serdang Jaya here. According to BERNAMA News Agency, the protest was accepted after it was found that there was an error in the referee's assessment of points, thus seeing the final match being repeated. The young athlete did not waste the second opportunity she was given when she returned to the court with even greater determination through a 12-9 victory to ensure that the gold was hers. Aleesya Zahierah said that the experience of having to compete i n two finals was indeed challenging, but the early defeat never discouraged her because she believed that all the sacrifices and hard work she had put in all this time qualified her to stand as the champion. "It was very challenging, but I didn't give up. The first time I won silver, I didn't give up because I knew I worked hard and trained hard for this. I think I deserved the gold medal," she said when met. According to the athlete from Kuching, she went into the repeat action with one determination, which was not to waste the second chance she was given. "I felt I had to win. I had a strong desire to win and that's why I didn't give up. My thinking was that I deserved the gold, so I wouldn't give up and in the end I managed to get it," she said. She said the success was even more meaningful because she only started practising silambam about two or three years ago, much shorter than most of her competitors who had been training since childhood. "I faced challenges because many in this sport are very exper ienced and have been training since childhood, while I only started about two or three years ago. So there is a difference in experience level, but I tried to overcome the challenges by working hard," she said. She said winning the gold also required great sacrifices when having to train every day, which meant having to reduce time with friends and family. This is her second appearance on the SUKMA stage after winning a bronze medal in the same category in the 2024 edition in Sarawak.