NEAR MISSES

His exploits in the pool are legendary. Once the world’s fastest man for the 50m free. Gold medallist at the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi, India. Winner of 20 gold medals from the SEA Games. Yet the enduring appeal of swimming legend Ang Peng Siong’s story lies elsewhere – in the breathing lessons from his near misses.

At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, he just missed the cut for the 100m free final but bounced back to take the consolation final. At the 1986 World Championships in Madrid, Spain, he came agonisingly close to a medal in a field which included big American stars Tom Jager and Matt Biondi but his focus quickly turned to his next target – the 1988 Seoul Olympics. There he missed the final for his favourite event – the 50m free – and didn’t do as well as he expected in the consolation final. Yet he moved on – surely and bravely.

“Yes, there were high moments in my career. I feel good about them and still look back with pride and honour,” says the 53-year-old, adding that he is often humbled by the thought of how a simple chap who started training in a public pool (Farrer Park) under the guidance of his father could “go all over the world chasing dreams.” But some of the best take aways from sports, he says, have come more from the near misses and the accompanying disappointments. Experiencing failures gives one perspective, helping a high achiever to understand the struggles of other athletes.

Even if the end result is success, it is important to face obstacles in the journey. Which is why the three-time Sportsman of the Year – for all his international feats which brought swimming in Singapore to dazzling heights in the 1980s – still counts his gold in the men’s 50m free at the 1993 SEA Games on home ground as one of his high points. “Some may feel this was ‘just’ the SEA Games but this gold medal was very special. I was 31 and no longer in my prime. Yet I was trying to match the rising stars (like Indonesia’s Richard Sam Bera) and aiming for gold. All this took extra effort and going through the whole process was both humbling and empowering,” he says.

Looking back, one senses that Peng Siong could not have become the coach and mentor he is today if his career had just been about glorious moments. Like when he, at 18, won a sports scholarship to Houston University in the U.S. after being scouted at an international meet in Hawaii. Like when he sensationally became the world’s fastest man in the 50m free, clocking 22.69 seconds at the 1982 US National Championships in Indianapolis.

Indeed, his own encounters with failures – even if they were just blemishes in an otherwise brilliant career – have served him well as a coach. Swimmers he has groomed speak highly of his empathy despite his high standards and his patience with those who may not be as naturally gifted as himself. Tellingly, he has a special soft spot for our Paralympic swimmers and has guided the likes of Theresa Goh and Yip Pin Xiu to international success. It is little wonder that these swimmers and their families speak glowingly about this “fatherly coach” who is also confidant and team leader.

This is an accolade that sits well on Peng Siong. Afterall, any conversation with him about his career almost always inevitably starts and ends with the coaches in his life – including his father Ang Teck Bee, his coaches at ACS (Wee Moh Nam and Lenn Wei Ling) as well as his US mentor Phil Hansel who launched his international career.