Historic Performances Buoy Team Singapore At The 27th SEA Games

Historic Performances Buoy Team Singapore At The 27th SEA Games

Young debutants impressed while good spread of sports delivered medals

Myanmar, 22 December 2013 – Many historic firsts achieved; five SEA Games and five National records broken; and over 100 debutants making their mark. This was how Team Singapore concluded its campaign at the 27th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar today. In total, our contingent of 309 athletes garnered a total of 108 medals consisting of 34 Gold, 29 Silver and 45 Bronze at the Myanmar Games.

2. “Our athletes have performed well at the Games. We had a good mix of young new debutants delivering medals and hitting their personal bests together with SEA Games veterans,” said Chef de Mission Ms Annabel Pennefather, who led Team Singapore at the 27th SEA Games. “We have seen some impressive results, including a number of pleasant surprises in a broader range of sports which I hope will inspire others to follow in their footsteps. The Myanmar Games has shown us what Team Singapore is capable of, and it is a useful gauge for our athletes and officials to prepare themselves for future meets including the 28th SEA Games which Singapore will be hosts of in 2015. I would like to congratulate all our athletes for a job well done and encourage them to continue to push their boundaries for their fulfillment of their sporting aspirations and to be a source of pride for our nation.”

Many historic firsts achieved

3. Athletics, Archery, Cycling, Diving, Equestrian, Rowing, Shooting and Traditional Boat Race are among those that made it to the history books as each sport delivered its first medal in decades. These include Mok Ying Ren’s first ever gold in the Men’s Marathon; Chan Jing Ru’s first Gold in Archery since 1983; Dinah Chan’s first Gold medal in Cycling since 1997; Janine Khoo’s first Gold in Equestrian since 1995; Saiyidah Aisyah’s first Gold in Rowing since 1997; as well as Nicole Tan’s first ever Gold medal in the 25m Women’s Pistol event. The penultimate day of the Games also saw judoka Ho Han Boon fighting his way to Singapore’s first Gold in the sport in 24 years.

4. The Men’s Basketball team also achieved a milestone with their first medal since 1979 when they captured the Bronze.

Commendable and inspiring showing by debutants

5. More than 50% (167) of this year’s contingent were young debutants, with 141 of them aged 21 and below. Of these debutants, 92 of them contributed to 47% (51 medals) of the total medal haul. They include archer Chan Jing Ru, shooter Nicole Tan, equestrian rider Janine Khoo and Silat exponent Muhammad Nur Alfian Juma'en, who all achieved Gold medals in their first major Games experience. Despite narrowly missing out on a podium finish, 17-year-old Shanti Pereira also made her debut Games count with a new National record in the Women’s 200m Sprint. Other stellar performances by the youths include Youth Olympic Games diver Timothy Lee who teamed up with his twin brother Mark Lee to clinch the first diving medals in 28 years.

6. The athletes also showed true grit in tackling the challenges that came their way: Janine bounced back from a major horse riding accident just months before the Games and Alfian showed no fear in taking down his Vietnamese World Champion opponent. While not a debutant, cyclist Dinah Chan’s win also serves as an inspiration, as it came just about three months after she was involved in a car accident.

Continuing the winning tradition

7. Swimming, Sailing and Table Tennis continue to be among Singapore’s top performing sports, raking in 20 out of the 34 Gold medals (59%) and contributing to 44% of the total medal tally with their combined 48 medals.

8. Singapore swimmers ruled the pool with a haul of 11 Gold, nine Silver and 10 Bronze despite having taken part in six fewer events compared to the last edition of the Games. While Quah Ting Wen walked away with the most number of medals with two Gold and five Silver, Joseph Schooling clinched the most number of Gold with five Gold and one Silver while setting a total of four Games records.

9. In Table Tennis, Singapore swept all four Gold medals on offer, contributed by a stellar team of experienced and youth players. Youth players Clarence Chew and Isabelle Li in particular, put up a strong fight against much more experienced players in the Singles events to win Bronze and Silver respectively.

10. At the same time, the Singapore Sailing contingent also surpassed their last SEA Games eight medals haul with five Gold, two Silver and five Bronze this time round. This is the first time that Singapore has captured pole position in Sailing since the 2005 Games.

11. Continuing the winning legacy, the Men’s Waterpolo team upheld their regional dominance with the 25th consecutive Gold medal. The team is exemplary in its consistent performance and constant renewal of talents. While the majority of the team is made up of experienced players, debutants like Toh Zhi Hong were among the key players that contributed critical goals during the competition to secure another triumph.

Gearing up for SEA Games 2015

12. The conclusion of the 27th SEA Games marks a new chapter for Singapore, as it steps up its preparations for the 28th SEA Games in 2015.

13. At the Closing Ceremony this evening, the SEA Games Flag will be formally handed over to Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Acting Minister for Manpower and Singapore National Olympic Council Executive Committee Member by His Excellency U Tint Hsan, President of the Myanmar Olympic Committee and Chairman of the Myanmar SEA Games Organising Committee.

14. The journey to 2015 then kicked off with a multi-dimensional performance, put together by Creative and Music Director Mr Philip Tan and presented by some 50 performers comprising students and working professionals from Singapore SOKA Association, current and former Team Singapore athletes from Taekwondo and Gymnastics, and School of the Arts Singapore.

15. Singapore also launched the official website and Facebook page for the 28th SEA Games today, and will be rolling out other key components like the theme song, mascot and logo starting from February next year.