Team Singapore to field largest away contingents for the SEA Games and ASEAN Para Games

Team Singapore to field largest away contingents for the SEA Games and ASEAN Para Games

Team Singapore will be fielding her largest away contingents for both the upcoming 29th SEA Games and 9th ASEAN Para Games (APG) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with 569 and 94 athletes confirmed for both Games respectively.

At the Official Flag Presentation Ceremony this morning, TeamSG Shooter Jasmine Ser and TeamSG Long Jumper athlete Suhairi Suhani were also unveiled as the flag bearers for the SEA Games and APG respectively.

Guests of Honour Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Minister for Social and Family Development and President, Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) and Ms Grace Fu, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth presented the Singapore flags to the Chefs de Mission who then handed them over to the flag bearers.

Said Ms Fu: “Our athletes and the team behind them have been training very hard to be ready. The journey to KL carries their dreams of wearing Singapore's colours and ascending the podium for our country, along with the sacrifices they have made for the sports they love. I’m confident that they will make us proud in KL. Let us back them up and give them our fullest support as One Team Singapore!”

29th SEA Games

569 [1] Team Singapore athletes will be competing in 35 sports at the 29th SEA Games, with four sports – Cricket, Ice Hockey, Ice Skating and Indoor Hockey - being contested for the first time at the biennial Games.

Ser, who will be competing in her sixth SEA Games, is looking forward to her role as the flag bearer for Team Singapore. She said: “It’s a great honour to represent Singapore and an even greater one to be selected as the flag bearer for the 29th SEA Games. I have always watched the opening ceremonies and even attended some, but I have never thought that I would be chosen as a flag bearer. I am excited and I hope Singaporeans will support us at the Games.”

Mr Milan Kwee, Chef de Mission for Team Singapore at the 29th SEA Games, added: “We are excited to head to Kuala Lumpur for the 29th SEA Games. Our athletes have worked very hard to qualify to represent Singapore. With the largest away Team Singapore contingent, we are aiming for an outstanding performance. We are confident that crowd favourites like swimming, water polo, shooting, table tennis and water-ski & wakeboard will do their best to perform. More importantly, we hope Team Singapore have a safe and enjoyable Games.”

9th ASEAN Para Games

Taking place from 17 to 23 September, 94[2] Team Singapore athletes will be competing in 11 sports at the APG. Suhairi will be looking to better his Silver medal in the Long Jump and is excited at the honour of leading Team Singapore’s largest away contingent in the 16-year history of the APG. He said, “The honour and glory of being the flag bearer for Singapore’s largest ASEAN Para Games away contingent is remarkable, and being given the opportunity to push myself to do better each time when facing some of the best athletes in the region is priceless.”

Ms Shirley Low, Chef de Mission for Team Singapore at the 9th ASEAN Para Games, is looking forward to the week-long event: “The Singapore team is excited and looking forward to participating in the upcoming Games. We had the advantage of the home crowd during the last ASEAN Para Games, and we hope to see all of our Singapore supporters again in KL in September.”

Keeping Team Singapore Connected

As the official partner of the Singapore National Olympic Council, Singtel will be providing each Team Singapore athlete and official with a complimentary SIM Only plan, and a ReadyRoam data roaming plan to enable them to stay connected to their families and friends during the SEA Games.

Olympic Day Celebrations supported by McDonald’s

Following the Flag Presentation ceremony, around 2,000 people joined in the Olympic Day Celebrations. Together with athletes, officials and Ministers Tan and Fu, they embarked on a scenic 5km Olympic Day Walk to the Marina Bay area and back.

Participants also had opportunities to experience different sports such as basketball, floorball and tennis through try-outs organised by ActiveSG.

#OneTeamSG Ready for KL

As the public mingled alongside Team Singapore athletes, they also pledged their support at the #OneTeamSG Ready for KL Activation Booth, sending well-wishes for a good showing on Malaysian soil come August and September.

The support campaign was launched in June calling out to all Singaporeans to rally behind our athletes as One Team Singapore, with travel packages to catch the SEA Games and APG ‘live’ in KL to be won.

Singaporeans planning to travel up to KL to support our athletes can also sign up for the ActiveSG Experience Tours. 3D2N and 2D1N packages for the SEA Games and APG are available with more information to be found at ActiveSG Experience Tours.

[1] The previous largest Team Singapore contingent for an away SEA Games was at the 1997 Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, where 422 athletes took part in 30 sports.

[2] The previous largest Team Singapore contingent for an away APG was at the 2008 Games in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, where 57 athletes took part in eight sports.