GetActive! Singapore Singaporeans to celebrate national day through sport

GetActive! Singapore: Singaporeans to celebrate national day through sport

Singaporeans can look forward to a series of sport festivals, community initiatives and competitions under the umbrella of “GetActive! Singapore” in the week leading up to National Day 2016 from 30 July to 7 August. The inaugural national event aims to provide a platform to inspire the Singapore spirit and celebrate our national identity through sport. The activities are designed to promote an active lifestyle through fun, exciting and inclusive sporting activities islandwide.

Explaining the idea of the new annual sporting event leading up to National Day, Mr Lim Teck Yin, Chief Executive Officer, Sport Singapore says, “The 28th SEA Games and the 8th ASEAN Para Games amply demonstrated the power of sport in bringing people together and inspiring pride and celebration as a “tribe” of Singaporeans. We would like to continue to celebrate every year as One Team Singapore. In line with this year’s National Day theme of “Building Our Singapore of Tomorrow”, GetActive! Singapore will provide opportunities for all to have fun, play and compete, and forge shared memories together through sports and physical activities.”

The GetActive! Singapore will have three key pillars to deepen citizen engagement, transform Singapore’s sporting and non-sporting spaces into social playgrounds, and expand opportunities for co-creation in promoting a sporting and active lifestyle.

Engage through sport: Singapore National Games 2016

Members of the community who wish to live their sporting aspirations and pit their sporting skills against their fellow Singaporeans can do so in the third edition of the Singapore National Games (SNG) from 30 July to 7 August 2016, held in conjunction with GetActive! Singapore.

Unlike the previous two editions in 2012 and 2014, this year’s SNG will see an increase in the number and range of sports being offered to 21[1] – out of which five are para sport. The 2016 Singapore National Games will also have a Youth, Open and Masters category for each sport; promising a sport or an event for everyone, regardless of their age and ability.

Says Mr Henry Tan, Executive Director, Singapore Disability Sports Council, “As we move towards a more inclusive society, the inclusion of para sports in the Singapore National Games would be a milestone for the local sporting scene. Giving a chance to all athletes to compete at the highest level is a positive step towards spurring greater participation and creating inclusiveness. The Singapore National Games will raise the sporting profile of the nation and definitely inspire more people to take up sports.”

Interested participants can register from 3 June 2016.

Sporting fun for children and families: Children and Families Sports Festival

GetActive! Singapore will offer opportunities for children and families including people with disabilities to have fun together at the sport festivals held across the ActiveSG centres island-wide over two weekends.

Held on the weekends of 30-31 July and 6-7 August 2016, the sport festivals will involve activities that will help children develop their fundamental movement skills, activities that promotes family bonding as well as activities that engender a sense of national pride.

Beyond reaching out to families, Sport Singapore will also be working with schools to include elements of sports and games during their National Day celebrations, either at the different ActiveSG centres or within the school premises.

Co-creating play: Active Enabler programme

Unique to GetActive! Singapore will be a call for creative, sport-focused and lifestyle driven proposals that are co-organised and co-created by the community and corporate partners that will encourage everyone, even those who do not exercise regularly, to develop a sporting habit.

These activities can range from mass participation events to social events that infuse elements of sport, to workshops and seminars, to even the development of innovative and inspirational initiatives, with a tinge of national day celebrations.

Opened to anyone who believes that they have a creative and innovative idea, successful applicants can expect to be funded up to 90-percent of qualifying costs, capped at S$25,000 (for project[2]) or S$50,000 (for mass events[3]), whichever is lower.

Beyond providing cash outlay, the Active Enabler grant has in-kind components in which SportSG will be providing sport expertise such as the provision of fitness instructors and sport coaches/officials, facilitation in organising events, to sport and snack packs, to even the provision of venue spaces for events.

Interested applicants can start submitting their proposals from 10 May 2016 till 30 June 2016.

Enabling the community to play through partnerships

GetActive! Singapore has already received valuable support from fellow public agencies. For instance, recognising that public spaces are important in realising the aim of this national initiative, Sport Singapore will be working with the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) to ensure that common spaces under the civic district and/or the central business district will be made available for approved activities organised by Corporate Singapore under Active Enabler programme.

Adds Mr Lim, “We would like to thank our partners in this initiative and we hope for more to join us on this journey towards getting more Singaporeans to Live Better through Sport. GetActive! Singapore is also a clarion call towards building a nation of resilient communities, a cohesive and caring society of engaged citizens, and more importantly, a Singapore that we are all proud to call home.”