‘I’ll keep joining until I win first place’: 17yo fulfils promise in DayakDaily writing competition

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By Dayangku Hidayatul

KUCHING, Oct 17: A personal promise to keep competing until he claimed first place paid off for 17-year-old Christian Richardson Donald, who has struck gold in the Youth Category of DayakDaily’s 2026 Sarawak Folklore Writing Competition after two earlier attempts.

The Bidayuh teenager from Kuching won the Gold Award with his story, The Stone Mountain of Bau, inspired by a legend passed down through his family.

“Actually, I made a bet with myself that I would keep joining this competition until I win first place,” he said when met by DayakDaily after the award ceremony at a hotel here today.

Having achieved his goal, Christian said he might not participate again, although he remained open to joining the adult category next year if time allowed.

He said his third attempt allowed him to write more freely, making his win an unexpected surprise.

The inspiration for his winning story came from a casual question to his father while they were travelling back to their hometown in Bau.

Christian said they were passing Dorod Kapow, now known as Fairy Cave, when he jokingly asked his father whether there was a folktale behind the mountain.

His father then shared a story told by his grandmother, Sumug, about how the mountain was once a longhouse before it transformed into a limestone formation.

Christian said the account caught his interest and became the foundation for his competition entry, which he developed with his own creative interpretation.

“I decided to put my own spin on the story. I do not think I changed much because there are many variations of the story among Dayak people. That was where I got my inspiration,” he said.

For his winning entry, Christian received a certificate, trophy, RM2,500 cash prize and a three-day, two-night stay at Imperial Hotel. — DayakDaily

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