SHE took up sport stacking at the age of eight or nine, and now, at 14, Penang’s Soon Ying Ying has made a name for herself as a world-class stacker.
The Form Two student of Chung Ling Private High School has won numerous local and international championships since 2021 and is currently ranked World No. 19 — one of seven Malaysian female stackers in the top 20.
Last month, she broke all three of her personal records at the WSSA SG Happy Stacking Competition in Singapore, clocking 1.689 seconds for the 3-3-3, 2.175 seconds for the 3-6-3, and 6.081 seconds for the cycle. Her combined time of 9.945 seconds secured her the top spot in the All-Round Female category.
She continued her fine form at the 2026 SBY Sport Stacking Challenge, held at The Beat at Kiara Bay in Kuala Lumpur yesterday, where she swept all three events in the 13–14 age group to emerge as the overall champion.
“I want to break the world records,” she told Buletin Mutiara in an interview, inspired by her favourite player, Woo Xin Yi, who, together with fellow Malaysian Chan Keng Ian, set the world Combined (G5) doubles record at 5.603 seconds.
“I was introduced to sport stacking by a daycare teacher during the MCO (Movement Control Order). Stacking cups as fast as possible was quite exciting, and I soon got hooked on the sport. At that time, we didn’t have much to do, so I practised with my friends for two hours every day,” Ying Ying recalled.
“Some people may think sport stacking is just a game, but for me, it is about winning many prizes.”
Her first competition was held online via Zoom, where she finished second in the cycle event. Determined to improve and learn more advanced techniques, she turned to YouTube to watch more stacking competitions.
At the online 2021 Penang Sport Stacking Championship, Ying Ying signalled her arrival as a rising talent by winning the 3-3-3, cycle and relay events, while finishing fourth in the 3-6-3.
More successes followed, with Ying Ying consistently finishing in the top three at competitions, such as the 1st Avenue Open over the past three years, WSSA 2024 Thailand Youth, WSSA 2024 SG Juststack Online Competition 35, 2024 US Midsummer’s Day Online Open, 2024 Penang Schools Championships, 2024 Southern Thailand Stacking Challenge, WSSA 2024 National, 2024 Malaysian Open, 2024 ISSF Asian Open Stacking Bangkok, the 2024 and 2025 Asian Open, and 2025 World Sport Stacking Championships.
Even the best players can sometimes drop cups during a competition or feel nervous beforehand.
Asked how she copes with such situations, Ying Ying said with a smile: “Before a competition, I usually walk around the arena and enjoy my favourite chocolate ice cream to calm myself. If my palms are sweaty, I will wash them.
“I used to feel quite tense before and would lose cups. But not so often now. To overcome this, I continue practising. You cannot quickly match other top competitors. It takes a long time to improve one’s speed. I don’t give up easily. Practise a little every day,” she said.
She is fortunate to have a very supportive family, with her father, Soon Chun Keat, a 58-year-old e-hailing driver, and mother, Celeste Tan, 45, along with her younger sister, Ern Ern, often travelling with her to competitions whenever possible.
Sport stacking has also provided an opportunity for Ying Ying to bond with her mother, with the pair teaming up in several parent-child events and achieving podium finishes locally and in Thailand. However, there are moments when the pressure of training and competition can lead to occasional tension between them.
While Ern Ern, a Standard Five pupil at SJKC Kwang Wah, also enjoys sport stacking, her main passion is dancing, especially K-pop.
Before taking up sport stacking, both sisters had tried ballroom dancing, while Ying Ying also attended gymnastics and karate lessons.
Soon expressed his appreciation to the Penang State Sports Council (MSNPP) for recognising sport stacking and offering incentives of RM2,000 for a gold medal, RM1,000 for silver, and RM500 for bronze at international competitions.
He also hopes more sponsors will come forward to support Ying Ying’s travel and accommodation expenses, noting that the national body, WSSA Malaysia, may sometimes only provide uniforms for overseas competitions due to limited funding.
“We, as parents, sometimes have to cover the costs of flight tickets and accommodation, which can be quite taxing,” he said.
With increased academic commitments in lower secondary school, Ying Ying now spends about an hour practising sport stacking each day.
She rues the absence of sport stacking in the 2026 Sukma programme. As a result, she has turned her focus to archery, with hopes of earning a place in either the Sukma squad or the Penang Schools Sports Council (MSSPP) team.
Over the past four months, Ying Ying has been training under development coach Kan Kar Inn at the MSNPP archery range in Batu Uban, alongside several Sukma trainees.
“I saw her potential when she joined us in December last year. She has the right physique but still needs to build her strength. Selecting archers for Sukma is quite straightforward and will depend heavily on training scores,” Kan said.
Just as sport stacking requires hand-eye coordination, concentration, fitness and agility, archery demands similar qualities. For now, Ying Ying is aiming for the bull’s-eye.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Lee Jia Ying and courtesy of Soon Chun Keat