Malaysia’s young talent Nadia Lim, 15, has surged into national prominence after establishing two new Malaysian Short Course National Records in the 100m and 200m Freestyle events. Both records were delivered at the short course competition abroad at the end of 2025 and have now been officially ratified and recognized, securing her place among the country’s rising generation of swimmers.
Nadia who represents KuRenang (Perak) first reset the National Record in the 100m Freestyle in late November, before returning 3 weeks later to eclipse a 12-year-old national mark in the 200m Freestyle, completing a year-end surge that subtly but distinctly shifts Malaysia’s women’s freestyle landscape.
Her first record came at the Hamilton Aquatics Winter Wonder SC Meet in Abu Dhabi on 22–23 November 2025, where she touched in 56.84, surpassing Khew Zi Xian’s 56.99 from July 2024.
| Distance | Time | Cumulative |
| 25m | 13.25 | 13.25 |
| 50m | 14.22 | 27.47 |
| 75m | 14.88 | 42.35 |
| 100m | 14.49 | 56.84 |
Her pacing across all four turns remained steady and deliberate, reflecting a composed and well-managed race rather than a sprint that relies on early speed. The back-half particularly her closing split managed to give her the edge she needed to move ahead of the previous mark.
Three weeks later at the Swim England National Winter Championships (25m) in Sheffield (11–14 December 2025), she extended her influence to the 200m Freestyle, clocking 2:03.38 and eclipsing Khoo Cai Lin’s 2:03.83, which had stood since the 2013 FINA World Cup in Singapore.
| Distance | Nadia Lim (2025) | Khoo Cai Lin (2013) |
| 50m | 27.99 | 28.79 |
| 100m | 58.54 | 1:00.55 |
| 150m | 1:30.75 | 1:32.77 |
| 200m | 2:03.38 NR | 2:03.83 |
In the 200m Freestyle, Nadia opened her race with 27.99, not an overreach but just enough to set the tempo. By the 100m turn, she was sitting on 58.54, holding her line and letting the water work with her rather than against her. Her split placed her a full two seconds ahead of Khoo Cai Lin’s 1:00.55 from 2013, a margin that fundamentally changed the shape of the race. Where Khoo built her swim gradually and relied on a strong back-end surge, Nadia had already taken control long before the final lap.
The third 50 metres is where the event often exposes weaknesses, yet she carried herself through in 1:30.75, keeping her stroke relaxed and her breathing controlled. There was no panic, no scrambling for rhythm; just herself trusting the pace she had built.
The last lap usually exposes fatigue yet Nadia didn’t allow it to reshape her race. She held her composure, kept her kick alive, and closed the final stretch with enough clarity to touch the wall in 2:03.38. In doing so, she moved past Khoo Cai Lin’s 2:03.83, a record that had stood untouched since the 2013 World Cup in Singapore. It wasn’t a desperate chase to the finish but a quiet, assured takeover, redefining the race on her own terms.
With both performances now officially recognised, Nadia Lim’s achievements arrive in the same season that saw Shannon Tan rewrite her own butterfly standards, together signalling a new wave of capability among Malaysia’s young women’s squad.
Congratulations, Nadia! You’ve only just begun to redefine the water ahead of you.