Malaysia’s junior bowling team has made history in Doha, capturing both the boys’ and girls’ team gold medals at the 2025 U18 Asian Youth Championships—securing the overall champion title even before the final Masters event begins. This marks the first time in tournament history that one nation has swept both team golds in the same edition.
With a current medal haul of 5 golds and 4 bronzes, Malaysia sits unchallenged at the top of the medal tally. Leading the charge is standout bowler Gulatru Ain, who has already clinched four gold medals—in singles, doubles, team, and all-events—and is now eyeing a record fifth gold in the Masters to complete a golden sweep.
In the girls’ team event, Gulatru Ain, alongside Adlina, Indan Nu Azliman, and Cheong Yi Wen, knocked down a total of 4,775 pins over 24 games to take gold. Chinese Taipei followed with 4,563 pins for silver, while Malaysia’s B team (comprising Nusra Rafana, Nurul Dayana, Helena, and Balkis) earned bronze with 4,456 pins.
The boys’ team gold came down to the wire, with the Malaysian quartet of Sayed Abdullah, Hafeez Azlan, Aqil, and Wan Mohd Zarif edging out Kuwait by just two pins—5,198 to 5,196. Host country Qatar claimed bronze with 5,052 pins.
In the all-events category, Gulatru Ain added another gold with a 3,805 pinfall, ahead of Chinese Taipei’s Huang Xin Cen (3,559) and teammate Indan (3,555). On the boys’ side, Aqil bagged a bronze with 3,921 pins, trailing Kuwait’s Nasser (4,037) and Qatar’s Abdulrahman (3,960).
Team manager Maradona Chok praised the athletes’ exceptional performance: “This is a historic achievement—the first time we’ve taken both team golds. Gulatru Ain’s performance has been phenomenal. Huge credit also goes to coaches Azidi and Liu Guoliang.”
The final Masters stage will see 13 Malaysians—8 girls and 5 boys—vying for more glory. All eyes are on Gulatru Ain as she aims to seal her fifth gold and end the championship on a golden high.
