Winning athletes at next month's SEA Games will not only receive a precious medal at the podium but also a personalised memorabilia of the 28th edition of Asean's biennial sports meet.

A total of 4,739 personalised plush toys of the Games mascot, Nila, were made.

The total number of plush toys, hand-decorated by members of the public under the Make-A-Nila programme, exceeded the targeted number of 4,500.

Aside from helping to sew the mascots, the public were opportunities to design and pen a personal message on the shirts worn by the toy lion. Among those who helped to personalise the mascots are students from the Singapore Sports School and Siglap Secondary.

The effort to decorate the mascots will be entering the Singapore Book of Records for The Largest Display of Handmade Plush Toys. There will also be a roving exhibition of a collection of 50 personalised Nilas from May 7-June 16, which travel from the SportsHub and Kallang Wave Mall for public viewing.

Toh Boon Yi, chief of the Singapore South-east Asia Games Organising Committee, said: "We are pleased to have Singaporeans participate in this Make-A-Nila initiative and to show their support for the Games."