Singapore's great Olympic swimming hope Joseph Schooling got off to a fast start in his quest for nine SEA Games gold medals as he made his much-anticipated entrance on Sunday.

The highly rated 19-year-old, who trains in Texas and is the hosts' unofficial poster boy, topped the men's 100m freestyle heats with 50.03sec, a shade off the Games record of 49.99.

Vietnam's Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, who is seeking a staggering 11 gold medals and won two in Games record time on Saturday, was fastest in her 200m individual medley and 50m butterfly heats.

Elsewhere Singapore's Guillaume Soh won a rain-soaked men's marathon in 2hr 34min 56sec, just 13 seconds ahead of Thailand's Boonthung Srisung after a sprint finish.

Thai runner Natthaya Thanaronnawat won the women's race by a more comfortable margin in 3:03:25, crossing 74 seconds before Mary Joy Tabal of the Philippines.

More than 60 gold medals are available on the second full day of competition in the 11-nation, 36-sport Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, which wrap up on June 16.
Source: AFP