Laurentia Tan

Laurentia Tan Yen Yi (pronounced|lɒˡrɛnʃə, respelled|lo-REN-shə; zh-cp|c=陈雁仪|p=Chén Yànyí，pronounced|tʃən iɛn i, respelled|chən yen yee) (born 24 April 1979) is a United Kingdom-based Singaporean equestrienne. Tan developed cerebral palsy and profound deafness after birth, and moved to the United Kingdom with her parents at the age of three. She took up horse riding at age of five years as a form of physiotherapy. She subsequently completed her A-levels at the Mary Hare Grammar School, a residential special school for the deaf, and graduated with an honours degree from Oxford Brookes University in hospitality management and tourism.

In March 2007, the Riding for the Disabled Association Singapore (RDA) invited Tan to join the Singapore team for the World Para Dressage Championships at Hartpury College in Hartpury, Gloucester, in England in July that year. At this event, her first international competition, she did well enough to qualify for the 2008 Paralympic Games. In September 2008, at the Hong Kong Olympic Equestrian Centre at Sha Tin, she achieved bronze medals in the Individual Championship and Individual Freestyle Tests (class IA). These were Singapore's first Paralympic medals and Asia's first equestrian medals at the Paralympic Games.

Tan was conferred the "Pingat Bakti Masyarakat" (Public Service Medal) by the President of Singapore at a ceremony at the Istana Singapore on 20 September 2008. [citation|author=Valerie Chia|title=Joy ride for Paralympians|newspaper=The Sunday Times (Sport)|date=21 September 2008|page=33; citation|author=Lin Xinyi|title=Historic reception|newspaper=The Sunday Times (Sport)|date=21 September 2008|page=33.]

Early years and education

Laurentia Tan was born on 24 April 1979 in Singapore.citation|title=Athlete biography: TAN Laurentia|url=http://results.beijing2008.cn/WRMP/ENG/BIO/Athlete/1/1210261.shtml|publisher=Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad|year=2008|accessdate=2008-09-13.] She moved with her family to London at the age of three years due to her father's work. citation|author=Tan Yo-Hinn|title=Tan's bronze shine: Thanks to mum and dad's resolve, this Singaporean is now a star athlete|url=http://www.todayonline.com/articles/275491.asp|newspaper=Today|date=12 September 2008|page=53 (archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bEzRz9UJ).] citation|author=Jeanette Wang|title=Laurentia, the perfectionist: Paralympic medallist lip-reads, insists on eating with chopsticks|newspaper=The Straits Times|date=11 September 2008|page=A9.] Tan developed cerebral palsy and profound deafness after birth, and doctors informed her parents that she would probably not be able to walk. Her family decided to settle in the United Kingdom as her parents felt she would be better able to reach her full potential with the medical facilities and specialist educational support available there. When she was in school, she fell so often and sustained so many minor injuries that her teachers and the school nurse affectionately nicknamed her "Trouble". At five years she was unable to sit and walk properly, and took up horse riding at the Diamond Centre for Disabled Riders [citation|title=The Diamond Centre for Disabled Riders: Who we are|url=http://www.diamondcentre.org.uk/who.html|publisher=Diamond Centre for Disabled Riders|year=2005–2006|accessdate=2008-09-17.] in London as a form of physiotherapy. This activity also helped her confidence and self-esteem.

Tan completed her A-levels at the Mary Hare Grammar School, a residential special school for the deaf, where she was a prefect. She also won an Elizabeth Dyson Prize for progress and achievement [Compare citation|title=Speech Day awards 2007|url=http://www.maryhare.org.uk/?id=speechday_secondary|publisher=Mary Hare Secondary School|year=2007|accessdate=2008-10-02 (archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bGsvWrNY).] and a prize for business studies. [citation|title=Mary Hare history: Speech Day 1995|url=http://www.maryharehistory.org.uk/articles/speechday1995.html|publisher=Mary Hare Grammar School|year=2007|accessdate=2008-09-13.] She stopped horse riding to pursue an honours degree in hospitality management and tourism at Oxford Brookes University, and for a job as a mental health worker.citation|author=Jeanette Wang|title=First medal for S'pore: Tan claims equestrian bronze, also Asia's first, at the Paralympic Games|newspaper=The Straits Times (Sport)|date=10 September 2008|page=B14.] However, she missed the sport and took it up again in 2005. Tan said, "For me, riding a horse gives me the freedom, movement and energy that my own legs cannot do."

porting career

Tan took up riding again in October 2005 at the Diamond Centre for Disabled Riders, where she met her coach Heather "Penny" Pegrum. Encouraged to participate in dressage competitions in March 2006, she quickly progressed to the Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA) Nationals that year. In March 2007, RDA Singapore contacted Tan and invited her to join the Singapore team for the World Para Dressage Championships 2007, which was a qualifier for the 2008 Summer Paralympics.citation|author=Siow Li Sen|title=Grooming disabled riders|url=http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/whatsin/story/0,4574,296779,00.html?|newspaper=Business Times (Singapore)|date=13 September 2008.] The event was held at Hartpury College in Hartpury, Gloucester, in England, July 2007. This was Tan's first international competition where she achieved 63% or higher in both her Team and Individual Tests, qualifying her to be selected for the 2008 Summer Paralympics. In the Freestyle to Music Test, she was placed fourth in a field of 18 riders with a best score of 67.94%. [citation|title=Dressage rider Laurentia Tan qualifies for the 2008 Hong Kong Para-Olympics sic!|url=http://www.rdasingapore.org/?p=15|publisher=Riding for the Disabled Association Singapore|date=22 August 2007|accessdate=2008-09-11.] In October 2007, Tan came to Singapore for a visit and trained daily at Singapore's RDA with volunteer coach Sally Drummond. Tan resigned her job in June 2008 to train full-time with her coach Penny Pegrum and physiotherapist Anthea Pell.

2008 Summer Paralympics

Tan's first Paralympic event was the Individual Championship Test (grade IA). Riders in this event are categorized into grades I to IV, those in grade I having the most severe disabilities. On 9 September, riding a 20-year-old chestnut gelding loaned to her named Nothing to Lose (also known as 'Harvey') at the Hong Kong Olympic Equestrian Centre in Sha Tin, Tan scored 68.80% to claim the bronze medal behind the United Kingdom's Anne Dunham (73.10%) and Sophie Christiansen (72.80%). She thus became the first Singaporean to win a Paralympic medal, and the holder of Asia's first Paralympic equestrian medal.

Two days after achieving the first medal, Tan collected her second bronze with a score of 70.167% for the Individual Freestyle Event, in which with Nothing To Lose, she performed to music.citation|author=Jeanette Wang|title=Bronze once again: Tan can't hear music but she and horse 'dance' their way to 2nd medal|newspaper=The Straits Times (Sport)|date=12 September 2008|page=B21.] The president of the Equestrian Federation of Singapore, Melanie Chew, described her performance as "beyond our expectations", and that the wins would aid in promoting local awareness of the sport. [citation|author=Tan Yo-Hinn|title=Paralympics: Singapore's Laurentia Tan wins second Equestrian bronze|url=http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/375273/1/.html|newspaper=Channel NewsAsia|date=12 September 2008.]

Tan's win sparked discussion about the recognition given to Paralympians in Singapore. A correspondent to the "Straits Times" criticized the fact that the newspaper had not elaborated on Tan's performance or what was involved in the event, but had "focused almost primarily on her disability". [citation|author=Liang Kaicheng|title=So proud, but why focus on disability?|newspaper=The Straits Times (Forum)|date=12 September 2008.] Another letter writer to "my paper" expressed disappointment that less publicity had been given to Tan's achievement compared to the silver medals won by the Singapore women's table tennis team at the 2008 Summer Olympics. [citation|author=Yong Ming Han|title=Why so little attention paid to Paralympic bronze?|url=http://www.asiaone.com/News/Mailbox/Story/A1Story20080912-87350.html|newspaper=my paper (reproduced at AsiaOne)|date=12 September 2008|page=A28. See also citation|author=Leo Chen Ian (President, Disabled People's Association)|title=The value of gold: Paralympians put in as much effort as Olympians do|url=http://www.todayonline.com/articles/277213.asp|newspaper=Today|date=22 September 2008|page=22 (archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bF56VA58), which also appeared as citation|title=Disabled appeal for more media coverage [letter] |newspaper=The Straits Times (Forum)|date=20 September 2008|page=A36.] In addition, a "Today" reader noted that Tan would be receiving S$25,000 for her bronze medal, a tenth of the S$250,000 that table tennis players Feng Tianwei, Li Jiawei and Wang Yuegu received for their silver medals. He felt that she should receive even more than them, given what she had achieved in spite of her disabilities. [citation|author=Chua Sin Bin|title=She deserves even more|url=http://www.todayonline.com/articles/275473.asp|newspaper=Today|date=12 September 2008|page=38 (archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bF5E8A4i).] The President of the Society for the Physically Disabled commented that the disparity between the cash awards given to able-bodied and disabled sportspeople was "disconcerting" and looked forward to a single common scheme, because:

On 16 September, Nominated Member of Parliament Eunice Olsen asked in Parliament if there was a difference in the amount of funding given to Olympians and Paralympians, and why Paralympians receive a much smaller cash reward for medals won compared to Olympians. Teo Ser Luck, Senior Parliamentary Secretary (Community Development, Youth and Sports), said that on a "per capita" basis disabled sportspeople received about S$106,000 in the current financial year compared to $54,000 for each able-bodied sportsperson as there were 794 registered able-bodied sportspeople but only 16 disabled ones. Teo attributed the disparity in the cash rewards to the fact that Olympians faced higher levels and a larger scale of competition, since disabled sportspeople compete within disability classes. Further, cash rewards were provided by the private sector and Singapore Totalisator Board and were not paid out of state funds. The scheme for Olympians had also been in place for a number of years, while cash rewards for Paralympians were only introduced recently. [citation|author=Jeremy Au Yong|title=Top disabled athletes get far more funding|newspaper=The Straits Times|date=17 September 2008|page=B9.] citation|author=Tan Yo-Hinn|title=Paralympic hopefuls in line for more support|url=http://www.todayonline.com/articles/276353.asp|newspaper=Today|date=17 September 2008|page=43 (archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bF5RWJcu). See also citation|author=Marc Lim|title=M.A.P.'s new route: NSAs will get 20% cut of monetary award, some payouts reduced|newspaper=The Straits Times (Sport)|date=18 September 2008|page=B14; citation|author=Sim Chi Yin|title=Paralympians' feats inspire entire country|newspaper=The Straits Times (Sport)|date=18 September 2008|page=B14.] He said that the government was looking at how it could "develop a system to accommodate all athletes that represent Singapore".

Notes

References

*citation|author=Tan Yo-Hinn|title=Tan's bronze shine: Thanks to mum and dad's resolve, Singaporean is now a star athlete|url=http://www.todayonline.com/articles/275491.asp|newspaper=Today|date=12 September 2008|page=53 (archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/5bEzRz9UJ).
*citation|last=Wang|first=Jeanette|title=First medal for S'pore: Tan claims equestrian bronze, also Asia's first, at the Paralympic Games|newspaper=The Straits Times (Sport)|date=10 September 2008|page=B14.
*citation|last=Wang|first=Jeanette|title=Laurentia, the perfectionist: Paralympic medallist lip-reads, insists on eating with chopsticks|newspaper=The Straits Times|date=11 September 2008|page=A9.
*citation|title=Profile: (Ms) Laurentia Tan Yen Yi|url=https://admin.fei.org/paralympics/Biographies/Athletes/Documents/SIN_Laurentia%20Tan%20Yen%20Yi.pdf|publisher=Fédération Équestre Internationale (International Federation for Equestrian Sports)|year=2008|accessdate=2008-09-17.

Further reading

*citation|author=Stephanie Gwee|title=Giving out doses of four-legged therapy|url=http://www.asiaone.com/Just+Woman/Motherhood/Stories/Story/A1Story20071120-37665.html|newspaper=The Straits Times (reproduced on AsiaOne)|date=17 November 2007.
*citation|title=Making up for lost time|newspaper=Today|date=7 June 2008|page=56.
*citation|author=Laurentia Tan|title=Riding with nothing to lose blog|url=http://blogs.straitstimes.com/2008/9/2/nothing-to-lose|publisher=Straitstimes.com|date=2 September 2008|accessdate=2008-09-13.
*citation|title=With Nothing to Lose, Tan rides into history|url=http://www.equestrian2008.org/eng/NewsDetail.aspx?nid=1036|publisher=Beijing 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Equestrian Events in Hong Kong, Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad|date=10 September 2008|accessdate=2008-09-13.

External links

* [http://www.efs.org.sg Official website of the Equestrian Federation of Singapore]
* [http://www.diamondcentre.org.uk Official website of the Diamond Riding for the Disabled Association]
* [http://www.rdasingapore.org Official website of the Riding for the Disabled Association Singapore]
* [http://www.sdsc.org.sg Official website of the Singapore Disability Sports Council]
* [http://www.teamsingapore.com.sg Official website of Team Singapore, managed by the Singapore Sports Council]
** [http://www.ssc.gov.sg/publish/teamsingapore/sportsidol/phase1/cat/laurentia_tan_yen.html Laurentia Tan at the Team Singapore website]

Persondata
NAME = Tan, Laurentia
ALTERNATIVE NAMES = Tan, Laurentia Yen Yi
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Singaporean Paralympic equestrienne
DATE OF BIRTH = 24 April 1979
PLACE OF BIRTH = Singapore
DATE OF DEATH =
PLACE OF DEATH =