Team Singapore beat 1993 haul of 50 golds; 70-gold mark within reach
By Charmaine Ng And Chua Siang Yee, The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2015
FROM the waters off Marina Bay, where Singapore's canoeists have been harvesting gold, to the Singapore Sports Hub, where netballers and swimmers have thrilled crowds with their golden feats, the nation's finest have had their sights on the larger goal.
And at the halfway mark of the 28th SEA Games, the mission to become the most successful Singapore contingent has been accomplished.
At 7.53pm yesterday, when swimmer Quah Zheng Wen touched the wall at the OCBC Aquatic Centre pool to win the men's 400m individual medley and the host's 51st gold medal, it signalled the writing of a new chapter in Singapore sports history. The medal meant that the feats of the Class of 2015 have surpassed the previous best haul of 50 at the 1993 Games, the last time Singapore played host.
"I'm definitely really proud to have the honour of being part of, and making, Singapore's history," said Quah, 18.
And with seven days left, and more golds expected in shooting, bowling, water polo, sailing and swimming, there is a very real chance Team Singapore could hit 70 golds by the time the Games come to a close next Tuesday. As of last night, the tally stands at 52 golds, thanks to the men's 4x100m swimming team.
The speed with which the golds have come even surprised Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong.
"We were not expecting to get it so early. We thought we might perhaps get it towards the end of the Games," he told reporters on the sidelines of the final day of the canoeing competition yesterday.
He said the athletes have performed "way above expectations" and cited home support as a factor. "The fan support has been tremendous... I think that gives added motivation to our athletes and I hope that will continue through the rest of the Games," he added.
The gold rush began three days before the Games officially opened last Friday, when table tennis players Zhou Yihan and Lin Ye won the women's doubles, the first gold medal of the Games, to lead the medal standings.
The top spot has not been relinquished since, although with Thailand (38 golds) and Vietnam (33 golds) not far behind, the host could be overtaken once the athletics events get into full swing.
With a bumper contingent of 749 athletes, Team Singapore's chef de mission Tan Eng Liang believes the 60-gold mark is very much achievable: "The pressure was that we had our 50th anniversary and the minimum was to hit this target.
"Our ability to go beyond the 50 bodes well for Singapore sport. We hope we can leave a legacy of sports, sports culture and wanting to do your best for Singapore.
"The message was very simple to the whole Singapore team from Day One: Do your level best for yourself, your parents, your club but, most of all, for Singapore. That message should carry on, although we've already achieved this 50-gold medal mark."
PA system fails midway through Majulah Singapura... this was how the crowd reacted at the OCBC Aquatic Centre
By Lee Min Kok and Chua Siang Yee, The Straits Times, 9 Jun 2015
Five times, Majulah Singapura was played loud and proud on the speakers at the OCBC Aquatic Centre as Team Singapore's dominant SEA Games swimmers mounted the podium on Monday (June 8) night.
But at the sixth and final time of asking - during the medal ceremony for the winning 4x200m freestyle relay quartet of Quah Ting Wen, Christie Chue, Amanda Lim and Rachel Tseng - the public address system crackled and died midway through the national anthem.
Cue nervous looks among the four Singapore girls on the podium.
The spectators in the stands, however, barely missed a beat as they rose to the occasion magnificently. Picking up from where the PA system left off, they sang even louder till the end of the national anthem.
Singaporeans keep singing the National Anthem loud & proud after sound system fails!Watch the full video and many more at our Thrills & Spills section on Toggle http://ow.ly/O4dIu #OneTeamSG #SEAgames2015 #Singapore
Posted by Toggle on Tuesday, June 9, 2015
The heartfelt rendition drew loud applause from the packed arena, with the swimmers even visibly moved, exclaiming "that was awesome!".
Quah even called it the "most memorable moment" of the Games for her so far, adding: "We talk about bringing people together, but that was the best example of sports really uniting people.
The crowd sounded so good, for a while I thought it was planned. It's a really awesome feeling, and it reminds you what you are racing for."
Led by Joseph Schooling, the swimmers bagged six out of seven golds on offer on Monday night, setting five Games records in the process.
Schooling, 19, also broke former national swimmer Ang Peng Siong's 32-year-old record in the 50 metres freestyle.
With Singapore set to dominate the pool and win close to 20 swimming titles, Majulah Singapura is expected to be heard many more times at the OCBC Aquatic Centre. But even if the PA system fails again, one can trust the partisan fans to chip in.
Shanti cuts to the chase
Great start earns bronze, ending 42-year medal drought in 100m
By Chuan Limin, The Straits Times, 10 Jun 2015
SHOCK, joy and then gratitude - those emotions washed over Shanti Pereira after she crossed the finish line in the 100m and looked at the National Stadium's broadcast screen yesterday.
The 18-year-old could hardly believe that she had come in third in the blue-riband event, finishing in 11.88sec, behind winner Kayla Richardson of the Philippines and runner-up Tassaporn Wannakit of Thailand, both of whom clocked 11.76.
This is the first time a Singaporean woman has won a medal in the 100m since 1973, when Eng Chiew Guay captured the gold at the South-east Asian Peninsular Games on home soil as well.
Exuberant after ending that 42-year wait, a grinning Shanti said on winning her first SEA Games medal: "I saw that I was quite in front. Then, I saw my race replay. When I saw that I got third, I jumped.
"I looked back and cheered to the crowd because I think they were a major part of my win today."
Shanti, who holds the 100m national record at 11.80, started off in explosive fashion and maintained her powerful run to fend off the other sprinters in a strong field.
She explained: "I'm actually really happy because I don't usually have starts like this.
"I owe it to my coach Margaret Oh. The whole time she was telling me, 'Just focus on your start and the race is yours.'
"And she was right."
With the 100m bronze earned, Shanti is looking forward to her next three events - her pet 200m, 4x100m and 4x400m.
"Winning the bronze is really the icing on the cake for these SEA Games... and a huge confidence boost for the next three days (of competition)," she said.
Her compatriot Calvin Kang, on the other hand, just missed out on bronze as he finished fourth in the men's 100m, just 0.02sec behind Indonesia's Iswandi.
But the 25-year-old turned in a personal-best 10.47sec, improving his previous mark by 0.01sec.
"I didn't even know what position I was after I finished the race. But in terms of the technical run, I was very happy," said Kang, who managed to beat the 2013 Games 100m champion, an off-colour and nervous Jirapong Meenapra of Thailand.
His next target is breaking the 100m national record of 10.37 within the next year.
He is not the only one spurred on to accomplish larger ambitions after the Games.
Soh Rui Yong, the men's marathon champion, will be aiming to become the first Singaporean to qualify for the event at the 2016 Olympics.
In order to do so, he must take good care of his body - which means withdrawing from the Games' 10,000m today, as the physical toll of Sunday's marathon has made it unwise for him to compete.
"It's very possible that I would risk injury," he said. "You should see me climb the stairs right now, I look like I'm 80.
"Honestly, I want to run the 10km race because it's in the National Stadium.
"Unfortunately, it is coming almost a month too soon for me.
"If I'm not in shape to run my best, I don't race."
http://tdy.sg/1I0oonZ - #SEAGames2015: In show of sportsmanship, Singapore marathon runner Ashley Liew waited for his competitors to catch up in Sunday's race after they took the wrong path. (via TODAY Sports)
Posted by TODAY on Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Schooling adds to joy of 6
He smashes S'pore's oldest swim record as swimmers bag six golds
By Chua Siang Yee, The Straits Times, 9 Jun 2015
HE IS conquering all and sundry. Not just his peers but also those who have gone before him.
Last night, one of the biggest names to "fall" to the talent of Joseph Schooling was Singapore legend Ang Peng Siong.
The teenager blitzed the oldest swimming national record - Ang's 22.69sec, 50m freestyle mark set in August 1982 - at the OCBC Aquatic Centre on day three of the SEA Games.
Schooling clocked 22.47sec in the final en route to the gold.
But even as a nation, those on social media and others lucky enough to witness history in person, raved about Singapore sport's newest poster boy, Schooling was replaying what went wrong with his swim.
Just moments after his record-breaking feat, the butterfly specialist was deep in conversation with national coach Sergio Lopez, discussing how he could have gone faster.
It goes with the territory of being in a sport where a hundredth of a second separates winning from losing, euphoria from misery.
Asked if he had expected to break Ang's record, the 19-year-old said: "Definitely. I wasn't feeling that good before the race. I had a terrible dive but I'm happy to have gotten my hand on the wall (in record time)."
Lopez, too, believed that the writing was on the wall for the record. He said: "I thought he could go 22.1 or 22.2.
"He told me he dived too deep and it kind of put him off a bit.
"But he got a gold and a national record. As a coach, what more can you ask for?"
Ang, a guest commentator at the meet, said Eddie Reese, Schooling's coach at the University of Texas, had told him on Sunday that his mark would fall.
Ang, 52, said: "He had a really good swim in the 100m and 200m free on Sunday so he is one of the most deserving swimmers to break the record.
"Can he go faster? I did my world-best time when I was 19.
"He's 19 too. This is only the beginning."
Besides his freestyle feats, Schooling also bagged his fourth gold of the meet in the 200m fly, where he set a new Games and national record of 1min 55.73sec.
It is the seventh-fastest time in the world this year and an Olympic "A" time, which earns him an automatic berth (subject to approval from the Singapore National Olympic Council) for next year's Rio Games.
Schooling was not the only one rejoicing last night.
Quah Ting Wen, a five-time winner at the 2009 edition, also had a night to remember with two golds.
She clocked a Games record of 55.93sec to win the 100m free - her first individual title since 2009.
She then anchored the 4x200m freestyle relay team of Christie Chue, Rachel Tseng and Amanda Lim to beat Thailand. Second at the plunge, she caught up to help Singapore win in 8:12.95.
Thailand were second in 8:13.43 while Indonesia finished third in 8:30.97.
Said Ting Wen: "I was nervous before the 100m free but I let my nervous energy just take me out on the first 50m.
"I tried to hold on and I'm glad it worked. The home crowd helped because I know I'm swimming for something bigger than myself."
Singapore finished as the biggest winners on the night, claiming six of the seven golds on offer.
Ting Wen's brother, Zheng Wen, kept up his good form, adding a gold in the 200m backstroke with a Games and national record of 2:00.55. He also had a silver in the 200m fly as he clocked an Olympic "A" time of 1:56.79 behind team-mate Schooling.
The last gold came from sprint specialist Tao Li, who won the 50m back in a Games record of 28.9.
The hosts' best night so far came at the expense of Vietnamese sensation Nguyen Thi Anh Vien, who was third in the 50m back and second in the 100m free.
But, really, the night was about one man.
Four races, four meet and national records, and four golds later, Schooling is proving he is head and shoulders above his regional peers as he stays on course for perfection in his nine events.
Schooling, who turns 20 next Saturday, said: "I'm on track.
"After the 200m fly, everything gets a lot easier.
"I'm going to have some fun tomorrow."
As the Games continues, some of our TeamSG athletes stood united with the nation as #OneTeamSG and paid their respects...
Posted by Team Singapore on Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Joy and relief in Singapore camp as teams claim golds
By May Chen, The Straits Times, 9 Jun 2015
HER nickname "Le Le" translates into happiness, but table tennis player Feng Tianwei had cut a downcast figure at the SEA Games for the past few days.
The three-time Olympic medallist, shocked early on in the singles event, struggled to find form and confidence.
The world No. 4's joyful demeanour finally returned yesterday, after the women's team laboured to a 3-2 win over Thailand to take the title, giving Feng her only gold of these Games.
The men's team also beat Vietnam 3-1 in a final that ended close to midnight, making it a total of six golds from seven events for the table tennis players.
Perhaps in scheduling the men's team final to take place about 11/2 hours after the start of the women's final, tournament organisers thought a match-up between Thailand and Singapore, a side that included Feng and No. 13 Yu Mengyu, would be straightforward.
But the match, watched by President Tony Tan Keng Yam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, lasted more than three hours.
Singapore's paddlers had to claw their way out of trouble, coming back from 1-2 down in the best-of-five tie. Yu Mengyu, playing the first singles, was beaten 7-11, 11-8, 10-12, 9-11 by Nanthana Komwong.
Feng twice levelled the score for Singapore, first a 13-11, 12-10, 7-11, 11-6 win over Tamolwan Khetkhuan and then a comprehensive 12-10, 11-8, 11-1 victory over Komwong in the fourth singles.
Isabelle Li stretched Orawan Paranang to a decider, but lost 11-7, 9-11, 5-11, 11-8, 7-11.
Yu, buoyed by the rapturous cheers of more than 4,000 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, anchored the team to gold with a 10-12, 11-2, 15-13, 11-5 win over Khetkhuan.
"The loss in the singles was a big blow to me," Feng, who partnered Yu to a silver in the women's doubles, said yesterday.
"What happened in the singles cast a dark cloud over the team. We were all quite low in spirits.
"Win or lose, every match is a precious experience for all of us. To be able to make a comeback and win today, it's a complicated feeling."
While national women's coach Jing Junhong had expected added pressure on her charges at home, the former national paddler said the Games has been much tougher than what she had imagined.
Still, she lauded team captain Feng for bouncing back after her singles disappointment.
"Every player will lose at some point, but the difference between an average and a great athlete is how fast she can recover from a setback," she told The Straits Times. "In that, Tianwei has bounced back really well to lead the team to victory."
Gao Ning and Co had a smoother ride in their final. While they also began by dropping the first tie - Li Hu was beaten 7-11, 4-11, 11-6, 10-12 by Tran Tuan Quynh - Gao and Clarence Chew won their matches.
Gao beat Nguyen Anh Tu 11-9, 11-4, 11-8 and Tuan Quynh 11-5, 11-6, 6-11, 11-9. Chew trounced Dinh Quang Linh 11-7, 11-4, 11-7.
Wushu's class of '93 almost matched
By Toh Ting Wei, The Straits Times, 9 Jun 2015
TILL now, the local wushu fraternity still talk fondly of the Class of 1993.
Then, Singapore's exponents lit up the SEA Games with seven golds, igniting a wave of popularity in the sport which eventually waned in the 2000s.
Over the past three days of the 2015 Games, however, wushu has propelled itself back into the spotlight, as the Republic's athletes thrilled the crowd at the Singapore Expo Hall 2 with a haul of six golds, three silvers and three bronzes.
It is a huge improvement from the past few Games editions, which provided only a gold medal each, as wushu struggled to replicate its achievements in the 1990s.
But, yesterday, team captain Lee Tze Yuan continued the gold rush of the past two days, with a 9.71 score to top the men's optional taijiquan event.
In the evening, the trio of Fung Jin Jie, Tan Xiang Tian and Tay Wei Sheng added gloss to the tally with their triumph in the barehand duilian event.
Lee said: "I am very proud of the team, we have become a tightly-bonded team and grown a lot together.
"I am a bit disappointed to have come so close to matching the seven-gold achievement but the Class of 1993 were a legendary batch.
"So to come even close to matching them is a very big step for us."
He also lauded his team-mates' sacrifices, with some members even spending last Christmas and Chinese New Year away from their loved ones because they were training in China.
Lee added: "We stand up for the moment the National Anthem is played, and when the anthem is over, life goes on for all of us."
The team are hoping that their rich harvest can bring about another surge of interest in the sport, just like the Class of 1993 did.
Sitoh Yih Pin, vice-president of the Singapore Wushu Dragon and Lion Dance Federation, paid tribute to the team's efforts in making the breakthrough, and also credited the home-crowd support in making a difference.
The MP for Potong Pasir added: "With the current competition in the regional wushu scene being stiffer, achieving this result is remarkable.
"Most of the exponents in this batch are actually quite young and we also have a promising crop of youth athletes coming through at school level.
"The future looks bright."
Cueist Gilchrist in a gold-winning frame of mind
By Marcus Lim, The Straits Times, 9 Jun 2015
WHEN Peter Gilchrist won his pet event - the English billiards (500) - at the SEA Games on Sunday, he rated his performance level at "60 per cent".
Yesterday, the Singaporean was crowned the English billiards singles champion for the fourth consecutive Games and delivered a warning that will send chills down the spines of his future opponents.
"I'm playing at 95 per cent now... getting to 100," Gilchrist said after his emphatic 3-0 gold medal win over Myanmar's Htay Aung.
"Hopefully in the doubles and team match, I will be at 100 per cent because we need that."
Played at the OCBC Arena, Gilchrist continued his dominance in style as Htay lost in consecutive frames (101-53, 102-48, 100-16).
The champion said: "I felt that I knew what I wanted to do with the balls, so it was pretty straightforward. I know that sounds a bit confident of me but I'm playing very well now."
In the earlier rounds, the 47-year-old underlined his class with a display of scintillating marksmanship.
Dropping the first frame to both Indonesia's Jaka Kurniawan in the quarter-finals and Myanmar's Oo Kyaw in the last four, Gilchrist stormed back in style, hardly giving his opponents the chance to return to the table, leaving them stunned.
For his latest win, Gilchrist credits the Sports Excellence (Spex) scholarship he received in 2013 as a factor that propelled him to victory. The programme provides selected athletes with financial support, allowing them to train full-time.
"Being on the scholarship is the best thing that's ever happened to me. Everyone is behind me on it. The support system is just fantastic," said Gilchrist, who previously had to balance playing and coaching the national team.
"I kept getting beaten by players and I almost wanted to retire, but now I can put all my efforts into training."
The England-born Singaporean is now looking forward to being paired with Chan Keng Kwang in today's men's doubles - an event that he has never won.
He will also be part of the team that will face Vietnam tomorrow in the billiards team event.
And Gilchrist is itching to go now that his turbo is on, saying: "We have home support with a great atmosphere and I'm in top form, which I wasn't last time."
The other Singaporean to play yesterday was Aloysius Yapp in the men's 9-ball pool singles.
The 19-year-old defeated Brunei's Ahmad Taufiq Murni 9-4 to advance to today's quarter-final against Myanmar's Maung Maung.
Resolute Singapore seal first gold
Dramatic finish as Malaysia tie score in last quarter but hosts find edge
By Isaac Neo, The Straits Times, 8 Jun 2015
TIED at 39-39 midway through the fourth quarter of the SEA Games netball final, Singapore coach Ruth Aitken called a time-out. She had seen enough.
With the gold medal on the line, her team had just let a five-goal lead over arch-rivals Malaysia evaporate. The 3,000-strong capacity crowd at the OCBC Arena had suddenly lost their voices, stunned by the Malaysian fightback.
The crowd's anxiety was understandable. Five days earlier, Singapore had let a six-goal lead slip to the Malaysians and eventually drew the match 35-35.
But this was not just an ordinary preliminary game. With President Tony Tan Keng Yam and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in attendance, this was a match of utmost importance.
With the pain of losing the 2001 SEA Games final still playing on the mind of Singapore goal defender Premila Hirubalan and many associated with the sport here, this was a match nobody wanted to lose.
And no one wanted the win more than Hirubalan, the only player in the squad to have featured in 2001, the last time the sport featured at the Games.
"Some of my team-mates laugh, because back then they were in kindergarten," said the 32-year-old.
But as the time-out was called, and with Singapore's gold hopes fading, laughter would not be the best medicine. Instead, what was needed was a strong dose of self-belief. "If they (Malaysia) can do it, we can do it too. If they come back and try to bite us, we're going to come back harder," said Hirubalan.
But fighting words can only do so much. The team also needed to regain their composure and stick to what they do best - defend, force a turnover and hit the Malaysians on the break with fast movement and passing.
Said Aitken, a former World Championship winner with New Zealand: "It was about applying the pressure on their defence, so our attackers had to slow that ball down. And then when we got possession, it was about moving fast, letting the ball go and passing."
Singapore did just that, their renewed confidence putting pressure on the Malaysians, resulting in several turnovers, including a vital interception by vice-captain and goal attack Chen Huifen.
Said Hirubalan: "Towards the last few minutes when Huifen managed to intercept this fantastic ball and ran all the way down to put the shot in, that's when I knew, everyone is fighting for every single thing... no matter what, we won't give up."
They held on to outscore their opponents and win 46-43 to rapturous cheers from the crowd, which also included Minister for Social and Family Development Tan Chuan-Jin and Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong, who presented the medals.
It also helped that goal shooter Charmaine Soh had undergone "noise training" to cope with the fever-pitch atmosphere.
Training with noise like heavy metal music worked a treat. She had stuttered late in Tuesday's game, missing four shots in a row for 72 per cent goal accuracy, but yesterday she emerged as the game's highest scorer with 38 goals and 79 per cent accuracy.
Not surprisingly, the crowd and the energy they exhibited served to inspire the team.
Captain Micky Lin, who has been on three Asian Championship-winning teams, said it was a special moment to win the gold on home ground.
"This is my first SEA Games, even though I've been playing for over 10 years, so this is really special," she said. "It's not often that netball is featured in a multi-sport event... the atmosphere was amazing, I'm really proud to be part of such an event."
Added Hirubalan: "We're usually a very quiet society, but everyone was cheering their hearts out.
"I've never been prouder to sing the National Anthem."
Foil team win 1st men's fencing gold
By Clara Chong, The Straits Times, 8 Jun 2015
AFTER four days of near misses, Singapore's male fencers finally broke their historical golden duck at the OCBC Arena last night.
The youthful men's foil team faced the Philippines in the SEA Games' final fencing event, and won 45-40 to snare the Republic's first men's fencing gold in the biennial competition.
And it was a mighty relief for the entire men's team, who were made to endure narrow defeats through the four days of competition, especially in Saturday's 43-44 men's epee team final loss to Vietnam.
That heartbreaking loss by the epee fencers could have affected the foil fencers, three of whom were making their Games debut.
But the team - comprising Kevin Jerrold Chan, 17, Joshua Ian Lim, 19, Justin Ong, 21 and Tan Yuan Zi, 25 - stayed focused, as the Philippines were no pushovers after beating fancied Thailand in the semi-finals.
Simon Senft, national coach for the foil team, added: "In the individual event, Kevin lost to a Thai opponent and we also lost to the Thais at the last South-east Asian Championships.
"It might be better to fence Philippines instead, as they will have no fear and we have never fenced against this team before."
However Tan, who was the only one among the team who had SEA Games experience, said: "We knew that we could contend for the gold, but it will not be an easy fight. It was very close, but I am extremely proud that we fought all the way to the end and made it."
The final was indeed evenly-matched, as Singapore took the lead after they were tied at 25-all, but Philippines stayed close all the way, trailing by just 39-42 near the end of the tie.
Tan revealed: "Coach told us to stay focused on the game plan, do not rush and try to pull a very big lead. It is all these little points and leads that add up to our gold medal."
With the last point scored, the crowd erupted into thunderous cheers as Lim, the last fencer, took off his mask and raised his arms in jubilation.
It made up for the semi-final defeats earlier yesterday by the women's sabre team, who lost to Vietnam 36-45, and the women's epee team, who lost narrowly to the Philippines 28-29. Both settled for bronze.
With a successful harvest of three golds, three silvers and seven bronzes, the men's foil team's breakthrough ensured that Team Singapore ended their SEA Games journey on the sweetest note.
2nd dive a flop but Mark's solid last attempt rescues bronze
By Charles Ong, The Straits Times, 8 Jun 2015
THERE was