Singapore lion dance troupe wins Genting World championship, breaking Malaysia’s 13-year streak

SINGAPORE - A lion dance troupe from Singapore emerged victorious in the 14th Genting World Lion Dance Championship on Sunday, breaking a 13-year streak held by Malaysian troupes.

A total of 36 teams from around the world, including Myanmar, China and the United States, competed in the finals of the three-day championship. It was organised by Resorts World Genting in Malaysia.

Singapore’s Yi Wei Athletic Association sent two teams to the battle of the Chinese mystical beasts.

Its Team B secured victory with 9.73 points, while its Team A came in third with a score of 9.58.

A video of the two teams’ performances posted on TikTok showed Team B’s yellow-orange and Team A’s white-gold lions gracefully manoeuvring and dancing on top of high stilts, to loud applause from the audience.

“We are proud to be able to bring the trophy back home, as the Genting World Lion Dance Championship is every lion dancer’s dream,” said Yi Wei’s coach Marcus Tok. “Being able to clinch the gold award is already an achievement, but getting both the gold and bronze medal is an accomplishment for us.”

He added that the troupe has been competing in this event since 2005, and started preparations for this year’s competition four months ago, training four times a week. They ramped up training to six times a week near the competition date.

The Sungai Way Khuan Loke Dragon and Lion Dance Association from Malaysia came in second in the competition with a score of 9.64.

The China Press reported that lion dance troupes from Malaysia had won the last 13 editions of the championship.

According to the report, the champion will receive US$15,000 (S$20,000) in cash, while the first and second runners-up will receive US$8,000 and US$5,000 respectively.

The competition returned in 2023 after a four-year break due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Yi Wei’s Mr Tok said the team would be celebrating their win with a dinner, and will be participating in upcoming competitions, such as the Ngee Ann City National Lion Dance Championships in September.

Mr Ang Mong Seng, president of Singapore Wushu Dragon and Lion Dance Federation, told The Straits Times that Malaysia had won all 13 titles at this championship since its conception in 1994, until Yi Wei Athletic Association Team B broke its dominance.

“This is definitely no easy task especially when the championship trophy has never left their home country before,” he said, adding that the troupe made history for Singapore and its achievements will be a big encouragement for lion dance practitioners here.

Mr Ang explained that the Malaysian lion dance troupes have been very dominant because Malaysia has a larger talent pool compared to Singapore. 

Lion dance is a less attractive sport here, he added, and young people tend to focus on their studies or careers instead of sport.

Still, Mr Ang said the federation will continue to work with the troupes to attract more young people to join this sport.

“We hope this success will spur more lion dance troupes to put in effort to take part in competitions,” he added.