{
  "id": 3705084,
  "title": "Sukma snub fires Helena to Asian junior bowling gold",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/sukma-snub-fires-helena-to-asian-junior-bowling-gold",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-27T08:21:14.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Straits Times",
    "slug": "new-straits-times",
    "url": "https://www.nst.com.my/sports/others/2026/08/1519979/sukma-snub-fires-helena-asian-junior-bowling-gold"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Helena Jamal's exclusion from the Malaysia Games (Sukma) team only intensified her determination to succeed. Despite the disappointment, the 18-year-old turned her focus towards the Asian Junior Bowling Championships in Jakarta. There, Helena triumphed in the girls' All Events title, adding to her collection of two gold medals and a silver. Before this, she had teamed up with Nur Syahira Amani Abdullah to win the doubles event and helped Malaysia secure a silver in the team competition. Helena's tally of 3,469 pinfalls over 18 games, with an impressive average of 192.72, narrowly edged Singapore's Carine Foo by just five pins. This remarkable achievement came after Helena had been frustrated by not being selected for the Sukma team, explaining that she was still rebuilding her game. Nevertheless, Helena's coach Esther Cheah, Azidi Ameran, and Alex Liew remained steadfast in their support, helping her through the challenging process of finding consistency in her bowling.",
  "summary": "KUALA LUMPUR: Missing out on the Malaysia Games (Sukma) team hurt Helena Jamal, but the disappointment has instead fuelled the 18-year-old to a golden campaign at the Asian Junior Bowling Championships in Jakarta today.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}