03-05-2025
230kg rare black Marlin loses battle
230kg rare black Marlin loses battle
LABUAN:
The star attraction of this year's Labuan International Sea Challenge (LISC) was a hefty 230kg rare black Marlinbut the fact that it fetched only RM3,000 in reward did not matter for the nine Labuan anglers who hooked the fish after a herculean battle at sea.
'It's not the money. There was greater satisfaction in finally catching the prized fish which is regarded as the Rollsroyce of the seas for its scarcity and swimming speed of 80km per hour. To catch it is the dream of every angler,' said Wyner Vilus Boijohn, spokesman for his nine-member team which travelled in three boats to hit the 'jackpot' some 160 nautical miles from Labuan.
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The RM 3,000 was because the marlin was caught under the bill fish category. Over-all champions won between RM45,000 and M10,000.
The popular marlin is also the original symbol of Labuan's premier game fishing challenge which started in 1979. The marlin hauled in last week was at Ardaser Reef off the Spratlys.
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Wyner said the marlin put up fierce resistance at some point diving as deep as 500 meters. 'We finally managed to subdue it after an hour and won the tug-of-war.
'Six anglers were involved in pulling up the giant'
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The trolling fishing method was used with a 130lb fishing rod and size 130 fishing reel filled 900m of monofilament was used to lure the targeted fish.
Wyner said the team was glad the record-breaking catch confirms Labuan remains the ideal regional destination for such events which organised yearly by Labuan Corporation with the support of other agencies.
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The eight other anglers in the Labuan team were - Teddy Eric Alfred,Anthony Tony Dominic,Ker Chin Cheang, Shamsuri A Rahman,Kairudin Hamidun, Armat Mosidin,Zainulariffin Julkapli ,M Yusof Manan and three crew.
Labuan is no stranger to such super-sized fish. In 2017 an amateur fisherman hooked a 205kg grouper and sold it to a restaurant for more than RM 10,000 and another 241 kg was caught in 2019 and sold for RM12,255 more recently another 160kg monster fetched RM8,000 in the market.
