Lim suffers heartbreaking semifinal defeat, loses SEAG crown

Jamie Lim failed to defend her Southeast Asian Games title and settled for bronze medal in the women's -61kg kumite while Jayson Macaalay also placed second-runner up in the men's -60kg kumite in the 31st SEA Games at the Ninh Binh Gymnasium in Hanoi, Vietnam Wednesday, May 18.
Lim couldn't sustain her form heading into the semifinal as she absorbed a 7-2 beating against home bet Ngoan Nguyen Thi of Vietnam.
Ngoan rode on momentum after leading 3-2 at the 36-second mark as Lim endured a small cut under her left eye.
The Vietnamese karateka showed poise and unloaded swift strikes to turn back the defending SEA Games champion and gain a 4-2 advantage.
With less than 20 seconds, Lim, who's down 7-2, attempted for a late aggression but could not land clear strikes as time expired.
Earlier, Lim who is the 2021 Asian Championships silver medalist, handly defeated Sirimoungkhoune Sirivimon of Laos in the quarterfinal, 6-3, before suffering the heartbreaking semifinal loss.
Meanwhile, Macaalay eked out a 1-0 win against Thai foe Siwakon Muekthong in the battle for bronze.
In kata action, Rebecca Torres and Joco Vasquez ended up with bronze finishes in the men's and women's individual, respectively.