June 28, 2008—It was a night to celebrate Singapore’s overall excellence in sport. However, the Singapore Sports Awards 2008 were also a resounding confirmation of our athlete development programmes. Some 62 athletes, coaches, teams and organizations were recognized at the Sports Award, with three of the top four individual awards going to athletes who still haven’t celebrated their 20th birthdays.

“It has been an excellent year for Singapore sports,” said Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports and the Guest of Honour at the Awards. “Our sportsmen and women have made it into the world’s top sporting ranks.”

Sportsman of the Year, Gao Ning played his way into the No.10 spot in world rankings in 2007, the highest ever ranking for a Singaporean in men’s table tennis. As the oldest of the individual award winners, Gao Ning is still barely 26 years old.

Eighteen year-old swimmer Tao Li picked up her second award as Sportswoman of the Year. Tao Li is ranked No.11 in the world in the 50-meter butterfly. The Singapore Sports School student is one of only three Asians in the world’s top 15 for this event. At the South East Asian Games in Thailand in December 2007, she swam away with four gold medals.

Jazreel Tan, 19 years old, was named Sportsgirl of the Year on the back of her sterling, silver-medal winning performance in Mexico City at the Masters Finals at the World Women’s Bowling Championships. She also claimed a silver medal at the SEA Games in Thailand. She also attends the Sports School.

Raffles Junior College student Jonathan Koh, 18 years old, was honored as Sportsboy of the Year after winning two gold medals in his debut at the 2007 SEA Games. Competing in the 10m air rifle event, Jonathan also claimed top honors at the Singapore Open Shooting Championships in September 2007. He only began shooting air rifle in Secondary One.

The National teams also had some extraordinary performances in 2007. The National women’s table-tennis team was the recipient of the Team of the Year award (for Team Events). Not only did they win a silver medal at the world-class 18th Asian Table-Tennis Championships, the women’s team also won a total of seven gold medals at the 2007 SEA Games.

Last year in soccer, the Lions maintained an unbeaten 15-match streak to retain the ASEAN Football Championship. They went on to qualify for the third round of the Asian Group of the World Cup – a first-ever for our young soccer team. For these achievements, the Lions were named Team of the Year (for a Team Sport), and Lion’s Coach Radojko (‘Raddy’) Avramovich was recognized with the Coach of the Year award.

However, Singapore’s achievements in 2007 went well beyond the sporting arena as the country campaigned to hold the inaugural Youth Olympic Games. “Students, adults, corporations and our heartlanders—each helped to demonstrate to the IOC and the world just how united Singapore was in our desire to host the first YOG,” noted Dr. Balakrishnan. The process saw “Singaporeans bonding as a people, rallying as a nation and working together—to turn what started as a dream into reality.”

The youth factor was also evident in the awarding of the IOC Sports and Youth Trophy to Singapore’s Ministry of Education (MOE). The local school system has been a diversified supporter of recreational and competitive sports and deeply committed to the ideals of the Olympic Movement. Most recently, the MOE led the way as local students joined the Giving is Winning campaign by the IOC and the United Nationals High Commissioner for Refugees. With the support of the MOE, Singapore’s students were among the engaged and vocal supporters of the country’s bid for the Youth Olympic Games.

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