Sport in Singapore

Singaporeans participate in a wide variety of sports for recreation as well as competition. Popular sports include football, swimming, badminton, basketball and table tennis. Most people live in public residential areas that often provide amenities including swimming pools, outdoor basketball courts as well as indoor sport centres which provide facilities for badminton, squash, table tennis, gymnastics, indoor basketball and volleyball, among others.

Living on an island surrounded by the ocean, the people also enjoy many water activities including sailing, kayaking and waterskiing. There is also a number of avid recreational scuba divers, a prominent diving spot being the southern island Pulau Hantu, known for its coral reefs.

In the realm of spectator sport, Association football is arguably the most popular sport. Singapore has its own professional football league, known as the S.League. Launched in 1996, the league now consists of 10 teams competing with each other in stadiums around the country. In 1998, 2004 and 2007 the Singapore national football team became the champions of the Tiger Cup, the premier football competition in South-East Asia.

While not a major sporting power, Singapore's athletes have performed well in regional as well as international competitions, especially in table tennis, badminton, sepak takraw, bowling, sailing, silat, swimming and water polo. To date, Singapore has won two Olympic silver medals, one at the 1960 Rome Summer Olympics by weightlifter Tan Howe Liang and the other at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics in the women's double table tennis by singapore players Li Jiawei, Feng Tianwei and Wang Yuegu. The country has come close thrice (all in women's single table-tennis, fourth-place finishes in 2000, 2004 and 2008). Some athletes such as Li Jiawei and Ronald Susilo have become national celebrities. In the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, Singapore won 5 Gold, 2 Silver, and 10 Bronze medals.

History

When Singapore attained independence in 1965, the Government called on the nation to build a rugged and robust society through sports participation. Sports was also seen as a way to bond people of different races. A Sports Division was created in the Ministry of Social Affairs in 1966 to boost the promotion of sports, with Encik Othman Wok, the then Minister, in charge. In the same year, the first pile for the construction of the National Stadium was driven in. The National Fitness Exercise (NFX) was introduced in 1969 to encourage physical fitness among the whole population.

The promotion of sports was further enhanced with the establishment of the National Sports Promotion Board (NSPB) in 1971. Its responsibilities were "to promote, assist and organize international competitions in consultation with national sports associations and the Singapore National Olympic Council and to manage and maintain sports facilities and sports stadia". In the same year, the National Stadium Corporation (NSC) was also formed to operate and manage the National Stadium. All these set in motion the government's call to promote sports to the masses. The culmination of the efforts was consolidated with the amalgamation of the NSPB and the NSC to form the Singapore Sport Council (SSC).

In 2005, the Singaporean team won the Asian Netball Championship with a win over the Malaysian team in the finals with a score of 53-39. [ [http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/167578/1/.html Channelnewsasia.com ] ] In the same year, the country hosted the 117th IOC Session, one of the biggest and most important sports-related events to ever be held in the city.

In 2008, Singapore was announced to be the host city of the inaugural Youth Olympic Games which will be held in 2010. This is believed to give the youths in Singapore a chance to experience the Olympic spirit.

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Singapore was guaranteed their first Olympic medal since 1960 — and only their second of all time— after their women's team defeated South Korea on August 15 to advance to the final of the Olympics table tennis championship. The women's team consists of Feng Tian Wei (World no. 9), Li Jia Wei (6) and Wang Yue Gu (7).

Government-sanctioned programs

The Government of Singapore sanctions a variety of sports-based programs for Singapore's education system in addition to normal physical education. The National Physical Fitness Award (NAPFA) was introduced in 1982, a scheme which requires the mandatory participation of all students within primary and secondary education. The scheme gives awards for a variety of physical tests for endurance, cardiovascular fitness and strength, including a medium-distance run of a few kilometers, and the results are reflected in each student's report book. As such, although gaining an award is not mandatory, students are often pressured to do so.

In addition, the government sponsors the Singapore Sports School which opened on April 2, 2004, combining a reduced curriculum with professional training in each student's preferred sport, in an attempt to nurture future generations of sportsmen and sportswomen. The concept behind the Sports School is that sporting talent should not be compromised when striving for academic excellence.

Individual Sports

Badminton

*Li Li
**2002, Gold, Commonwealth Games in Manchester, Women's Singles
*Ronald Susilo
**2004, Gold, Japan Open singles
*Wong Peng Soon
**1950, 1951, 1952, 1955, Champion, All-England Cup

Bodybuilding

*Joan Liew Lee Ting
** 2006, 1st place, Asian Women's Open Invitational Championships in Singapore (Welterweight)
** 2006, Guest posing at Singapore Bodybuilding Championships in Singapore
** 2002, Gold, Asian Women’s bodybuilding Championships in China
** 2001, Guest posing at Singapore Bodybuilding Championships in Singapore
** 2001, 7th place, 6th World Games in Japan (over 52 kg)
** 2000, Gold, Asian Bodybuilding Championships
*Abdul Halim bin Haron
** 2000, Bronze, Asian Championship, welterweight (75 kg)
** 2002, Gold, Asian Games in Busan, bantamweight (65 kg)
*Azman bin Abdullah
**1993, Gold, IOC-sanctioned World Games Bodybuilding Championships, middleweight
**1993, Gold, World Bodybuilding Championships, middleweight
** 3-time Mr Asia
*Simon Chua
** 2002, Gold, Asian Games in Busan, welterweight (75 kg)
** 2002, Gold, Commonwealth Bodybuilding Championships in Calcutta, welterweight (75 kg)

Bowling

* Adelene Wee Chin Suan
**1985, won 3 Golds at Asian FIQ Youth Championships, in Singles, Masters, and Team
**1985, won Ladies Masters champion, World FIQ Championship in London
*Jesmine Ho
**2001, Masters Champion, World Bowling Masters Championship in Abu Dhabi
*Jennifer Tan
**2002, Masters Champion, World Bowling Masters Championship in Denmark
*Remy Ong
**2002, won 3 Golds, Asian Games in Busan, Single, Trios, and Masters

Chess

* Ignatius Leong
* Lian Ann Tan

Netball

In 2005, the Singaporean team won the Asian Netball Championship with a win over the Malaysian team with a score of 53-39 at the Finals.

ailing

*Benedict Tan
**1994, Gold, Asian Games in Hiroshima, Laser class
**1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, Won Laser Gold in SEA games
*Joan Huang and Naomi Tan
**1998, Gold, Asian Games, Ladies International 420 Class
*Siew Shaw Her and Colin Ng
**1998, Gold, Asian Games, Men's International 420 Class
* Teo Wee Chin and Terence Koh
** 2005, Gold, Youth Sailing World Championship, Busan, 420 class

ilat

*Sheik Alauddin
**1990, Gold, World Silat Championships in Holland, 80–85 kg
**1994, Gold, World Silat Championships in Thailand, Men's Open

occer (Football)

*Malaysia Cup
**24 times Champion

* Fandi Ahmad
**1983-1985, Played for FC Groningen. Scored in a shock 2-0 against Inter Milan. In 1999, was voted one of the best 25 players ever to play for FC Groningen, earning him a place in the club's Hall of Fame. In 2003, he was named in the club's best eleven of the twentieth century.
**1988, Golden Boot Award, Malaysia Cup

*V.Sundramoorthy
** Played at FC Basel for Switzerland

*ASEAN Football Championship
**1998-Champions
**2004-Champions
**2007-Champions

wimming

*Ang Peng Siong
**1982, Gold, US swimming Championships, 50 m freestyle, with 22.69 s, fastest time in 1982
**1982, Gold, Asian Games in New Delhi, 100 m freestyle
**1990, Silver, Asian Games, 50 m freestyle
*Neo Chwee Kok
**1951, won 4 Golds, Asian Games in New Delhi, 1500 m, 400 m, 800 m freestyle, 4x100 m relay
*Junie Sng Poh Leng
**1978, won 2 Golds, Asian Games, 400 m freestyle, 800 m freestyle, breaking Asian Games record in both events
*Joscelin Yeo Wei Ling
**1993, won 9 Golds, 1 Silver, Southeast Asia Games
**1994, won 1 Bronze, Asian Games, 100m fly
**1995, won 7 Golds, 2 Silvers, Southeast Asia Games
**1997, won 3 Golds, 1 Silver, 2 Bronzes, Southeast Asia Games
**1999, won 6 Golds, 2 Silvers, 1 Bronze, Southeast Asia Games
**2000, member of world-record setting and NCAA Championships, 200 m medley relay, with teammates from University of California
**2001, won 3 Golds, 4 Silvers, Southeast Asia Games,
**2002, won 1 Bronze, Asian Games in Busan, 100 m fly
**2003, won 4 Golds, 1 Silver, Southeast Asia Games,
*Thum Ping Tjin
**Swam across the English Channel in August 2005.
*Tao Li
**2005, won 3 Golds and 1 Bronze, 23rd Southeast Asian Games
**2006, won 1 Gold and 1 Bronze at the 2006 Asian Games, and 1 Gold and 1 bronze at Milo Asia Swimming Championships
**2007, won 4 Golds, 24th Southeast Asian Games
**2008, made it into the finals for the 100 metres butterfly event at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, set two Asian records and the national record in the process, became the eighth fastest butterfly swimmer in the world and the first Singaporean swimmer to enter an Olympic final.

Table tennis

*Li Jiawei
**2001, Won 4 Golds, Commonwealth Championships in New Delhi
*** Woman's Singles,
*** Woman's Double, with Jing Junhong
*** mixed doubles, with Duan Yongjun
*** Women's Team Champion
**2002, Won 3 Golds, Commonwealth Championships,
*** Woman's Double, with Jing Junhong
*** mixed doubles, with Duan Yongjun
*** Women's Team Champion
**2003, Won US Open
**2004, Won US Open
*Jing Junhong
**2001, Win 2 Golds, Commonwealth Championships, New Delhi
*** Woman's Double, with Li Jiawei
*** Women's Team Champion
**2002, Won 2 Golds, Commonwealth Championships,
*** woman's Double, with Li Jiawei
*** Women's Team Champion
*Duan Yongjun
**2001, Gold, Commonwealth Championships, mixed doubles, with Li Jiawei
**2002, Gold, Commonwealth Championships, mixed doubles, with Li Jiawei
*Feng Tianwei
*Wang Yuegu

Track and field

*Chee Swee Lee
**1974, Gold, Asian Games, 400 m
*Ng Liang Chiang
**1951, Gold, Asian Games in New Delhi, 110 m hurdles

Weight lifting

*Chua Phung Kim
**1962, Gold, Commonwealth Games, bantamweight
**1970, Silver, Commonwealth Games, bantamweight
*Tan Howe Liang
**1958, Gold, Asian Games in Tokyo
**1958, Gold, commonwealth Games, lightweight
**1960, Silver, Summer Olympic Games in Rome, lightweight
**1962, Gold, commonwealth Games, middleweight

See also

*National sport records in Singapore
*Singapore National Olympic Council Awards
*Foreign Sports Talent Scheme
*Culture of Singapore
*Dance History of Singapore
*Theatre History of Singapore

References

External links

* [http://www.ssc.gov.sg/ Singapore Sports Council Official Website]
* [http://www.teamsingapore.com.sg/main/index.jsp Team Singapore]
* [http://www.singapore2010.sg Official website to support Singapore's bid for 2010 Youth Olympic Games]