Near misses for Singapore’s Paul and Noah Lim in Asiad, ju-jitsu brothers vow to return

HANGZHOU – Two days, two heartbreaks. Defeat and disappointment was what the Lim brothers Paul and Noah endured on their Asian Games debuts, after both missed out on bronze medals in their respective ju-jitsu bouts.

First, younger brother Noah, 21, was beaten in the men’s Under-69kg bronze-medal match, losing 2-0 to Kazakhstan’s Aldiyar Serik on Thursday. Then a day later Paul, 25, also lost at the same stage in the U-77kg to Mongolia’s Davaadorj Munkhtur by submission at the Xiaoshan Linpu Gymnasium.

Defeat sat heavily on their broad shoulders, and as they walked away from the media mixed zone after fielding questions from reporters, Noah put a reassuring arm around his brother and muttered the words “it’s okay”.

Paul added: “If it’s meant to happen, it’s meant to happen. I’m feeling okay... Of course, it’s upsetting because I was very close to the bronze medal but that’s competition.”

The event was won by South Korea’s Koo Bon-cheol. The two other gold medallists on Friday were the United Arab Emirates’ Asma Alhosani (women’s U-52kg) and the Philippines’ Annie Ramirez (women’s U-57kg).

Earlier in the day, Paul had progressed to the semi-finals after winning his first three bouts, but the 2019 SEA Games bronze medallist lost 6-0 to Ali Seena Munfaredi to set up a meeting with Munkhtur in the bronze-medal match. In ju-jitsu, athletes who lose the bronze-medal matches are ranked fifth, with the winners of the bouts getting joint-bronzes.

Noah, who was in the stands to support his brother on Friday, said: “Paul fought really well. In the second round, he actually beat (the last) Asian Games champion (Kyrgyzstan’s men’s Under-69kg defending champion Torokan Bagynbai Uulu) and in the third round, he defeated a super tough opponent from UAE (Faraj Alawlaqi) whom I consider the favourite for the competition.

“Unfortunately again, missed out on the bronze medal today but we both know there’s a lot to improve on and we’ll definitely be back stronger.”

Being in the same sport has also made their relationship stronger.

It was Paul who first got into the martial art discipline and he would practise his moves on Noah, which eventually got the younger Lim interested in it as well.

Paul said: “It’s very useful to have him by my side because competition is very stressful... having someone who shares my passion is a blessing. It strengthens the ties because we spend a lot of time training and going for competition. We form a closer bond because of that.”

They have competed in international competitions like the SEA Games together and these Asian Games were the brothers’ first.

During competitions, they have each other’s backs. Noah was taking notes on Paul’s opponents while his brother was competing on Friday.

Noah said: “When Paul is fighting, I try to study his opponents and when training with him, I will try to simulate his opponent to the best of my ability so having a brother is very useful because you can prepare for competitions together.”

While both brothers were aiming for gold in Hangzhou, they are confident that the experience will help them improve.

Paul is now eyeing gold at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand, while three-time SEA Games champion Noah is hoping to win a title at the next Asian Games in Nagoya in 2026.

The other Singaporeans in action on the second day of the ju-jitsu competition were Fiona Toh and Oon Zi Gui in the women’s U-57kg, and Putri Siti Nur Farhani (women’s U-52kg).

Toh lost 20-2 to Rattanaporn Thatthong from Thailand in the repechage, while Oon was beaten 5-0 by Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Minh Vuong in the round of 32.

Nur Farhani exited in the round of 32 after losing to the Philippines’ Mariella Rafael by submission.