Ai seh, our Singapore sprint queen Shanti Pereira went all the way to Glasgow for the 2026 Commonwealth Games, ran until her shoes almost catch fire, and officially became the first-ever Singaporean to power through into an individual sprint final at the Games!

In the semi-finals, the 29-year-old clocked a super fast 22.81 seconds—her season’s best—to squeak into the final 8, making her so happy she said she couldn’t even think properly after seeing the scoreboard.

Then come the 200m final at Scotstoun Stadium, she ran against absolute speed monsters from the Caribbean—including gold medallist Adaejah Hodge from the British Virgin Islands who flew like a jet at 22.07s—and Shanti clocked 23.21s to take 8th place overall.

Even though no medal, come on lah, little red dot standing on the track next to powerhouses from Jamaica and Trinidad is already power max—no need to win gold to make us shiok, steady pom pi pi already!

The Hall of Fame: Why Shanti is Already a Legend

For anyone who thinks 8th place in a final is “just another race,” you clearly don’t know the sweat, tears, and history behind this woman! Shanti didn’t just appear out of nowhere; she has been smashing track records for over a decade.

• Asian Games Double Medalist (2023): Remember Hangzhou? She ended Singapore’s 49-year wait for an Asian Games track-and-field gold by winning the 200m, right after clinching a silver in the 100m. Absolute boss energy!
• Asian Athletics Champion (2023): She swept double gold in both the 100m and 200m in Bangkok, showing the whole continent who’s boss.
• SEA Games Dominance: She broke records multiple times, clinching consecutive sprint doubles and making winning look like a walk in the park.
• National Record Holder: She literally holds Singapore’s national records for both the 100m (11.20s) and 200m (22.57s). Basically, nobody in the history of our island has ever run faster.

Why She is Hands-Down the Greatest Athlete on Ground

It’s easy to celebrate when someone is winning gold, but what makes Shanti the absolute GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) on local soil is her pure resilience.

A few years ago, after her initial 2015 SEA Games win, she hit a massive slump—injuries, loss of form, and critics telling her she was “past her prime.” Most people would have just quit, packed up, and taken a normal office job. But Shanti took all the doubt, turned it into fuel, and came back even faster, stronger, and more lethal than before.

Running against global powerhouses from countries with massive sports budgets and elite sprinter DNA isn’t easy. Yet, every single time she steps onto that track wearing the crescent moon and stars, she shows the world that a small island can produce world-class speed.

Standing on that track in Glasgow among the world’s absolute best isn’t just a personal win—it proves to every young kid in Singapore that we can compete with the world’s best. Majulah Shanti!