Deeply Rooted, Soaring High For 20 Years

20th Anniversary Celebrations and Awards Night 2024


Singapore Sports School marked a significant milestone with its 20th Anniversary and Awards Night 2024 during its commemorative event on 26 April 2024 at the Auditorium. Mr Lawrence Wong, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance graced the event as the Guest-of-Honour, and Mr Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Mr Eric Chua, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth and Ministry of Social and Family Development joined the milestone celebration. Approximately 1,000 past and present Board of Directors, staff and student-athletes, as well as partners and parents, were part of the momentous event.

The theme for the 20th Anniversary celebrations is 'Deeply Rooted, Soaring High'.

The festivities commenced with a symbolic gesture as DPM Wong and Minister Tong placed the final tiles to complete the ‘Wall of Aspirations’. This wall is adorned with 674 tiles representing the aspirations of various stakeholders, including the Board of Directors, student-athletes, staff, and alumni to signify their aspirations for Sports School.

The Auditorium lit up with a dazzling display of talents, starting with the Opening Performance which included 20 kompang performers, lion dance by 20 Multi-Sport and Track and Field Academy performers, and artistic showcases by pencak silat exponents, gymnasts, and wushu exponents.

The audience embarked on a nostalgic journey through poignant reflections from Mrs Moo Soon Chong, pioneer staff and Director for Student Development, Dr Irwin Seet, Board of Director and alumnus Scott Ang, and alumni and current staff, Rafiuddin Sawal and Muhammad Al-Qaasimy Abdul Rahman, as they shared the ‘The Singapore Sports School Story’. Alumna and current netball coach Angelene Narah Singh closed the segment by inviting Presidents of the Student Council over the past 20 years to place their aspirations for Sports School in a memories vault.

During the event, Mr Ong Kim Soon, Principal of Singapore Sports School, and DPM Wong highlighted the School’s remarkable journey of transformation over the past two decades and shared their aspirations and commitment towards the school.

In his speech, Mr Ong shared his vision for Sports School to do more for youth-carded athletes in Singapore and be the ‘education arm’ of Singapore’s high-performance sports system. Also, he revealed that $41,888 was raised as part of Project Champions Way for the Singapore Disability Sports Council, reflecting the School’s broader commitment to supporting disability sports and instilling social responsibility in student-athletes.

DPM Wong also shared his commitment to nurturing a sporting culture in Singapore. He said, “We are fully committed to do more because we believe in the power of sports. We believe that sports can enrich our lives and bring us closer together as a community and as a nation.”

He also announced a new scholarship for athletes pursuing undergraduate studies, an expansion of the current spex programme to support student-athletes in their sporting and academic pursuits. (Click here for full speech)

After the cake-cutting celebrations, awards were presented to past and present student-athletes in recognition of their achievements in 2023. They include 30 recipients of the Outstanding Sports Achievement Award who have achieved gold at the SEA Games, or medalled at World Championships or Asian Games. This year, a ‘100-cap’ recognition has been added to the Outstanding Sports Achievement Award criteria to recognise team sports athletes. Safuwan Baharudin from Football, Kimberly Lim, and Nur 'Aqilah Afiqah, both from Netball, are the first team sports athletes to receive the Award.

The other awards presented during the evening were the Moo Soon Chong Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year, presented to role-model student-athletes who have excelled in sports, studies and character, and the Annabel Pennefather Excellence Award and Tan Howe Liang Excellence Award, given to outstanding student-athletes who graduated from their academic programme in 2023 and have shown commitment to continuing sporting excellence.

The 20th Anniversary Celebrations and Awards Night 2024 encapsulated the spirit of excellence, unity, and inclusivity. As we celebrated the School's journey over the last 20 years, it inspired hope for a future with continued success and achievements.