International media reported that on the evening of December 15, tensions broke out at the Pencak Silat gymnasium at the 33rd SEA Games. The incident occurred in the women's B-class quarter-final (50-55kg) between Nor Farah Mazlan (Malaysia) and Chongthima (Thailand).
The cause of the fight stemmed from the referee's decision. When the two athletes were tied at 60-60, the referee declared Chongthima the winner, Nor Farah Mazlan suffered a defeat due to more violations.
The above decision caused controversy, making Malaysia angry. The Pencak Silat sports delegation of this country immediately spoke out against the result. Unable to find a common voice, the coaches and staff of the Pencak Silat Malaysia team led by Siti Rahmah Mohamed Nasir clashed with officials and referees of the 33rd SEA Games.
As the incident went beyond control, security and police were deployed to handle the situation. The above incident caused the contest to stall for a short time. However, the organizers still decided not to change the results, causing the Malaysian delegation to leave in disappointment.
On the media, Malaysia claimed that Nor Farah Mazlan had played well over the host country's athlete. However, in many moments, the referee gave a favorable result to the Thai fighter. The results are considered inaccurate, which have fueled controversy and tension at the 2025 Southeast Asian Games.
Malaysian newspapers have divided many conflicting opinions. Some sides believe that Pencak Silat's team acted out of anger, going beyond the limits when using violence against the referee. Meanwhile, many newspapers agreed with the coaches, criticizing the host country for being unprofessional.
The chaos at the 33rd Pencak Silat SEA Games arena has become a stain on the Thai organizing committee and the Malaysian delegation.
