Towards The Next Bound Of Sporting Excellence
National Day Rally 2024 Announcements
At the National Day Rally 2024, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced that Singapore Sports School will be relocating to the Kallang precinct as part of the Kallang Alive Masterplan. Kallang will be developed further as the “home” of Team Singapore where sport facilities, sports science, and medicine facilities, and several National Sports Associations will be housed and integrated in a single location to enhance synergy.
On the announcement, Principal Ong Kim Soon shared, “Prime Minister’s announcement is a big step forward for Singaporeans and sports in Singapore. It is an affirmation of the government’s commitment to support multiple pathways to success and a broadening of the definition of success and meaningful living in Singapore.”
Lim Chea Rong, Head Coach of the Shooting Academy, shared, “As a former athlete and a coach at Sports School since 2010, I have witnessed the positive impact of training alongside top athletes. Additionally, there will be greater synergy in coaching resources, which can elevate coaching standards. By learning from each other’s training methods and strengths, coaches can improve the quality of coaching. Also, closer collaboration with the NSAs would ensure a seamless development pathway. Lastly, this integration will foster a sense of belonging to Team Singapore, building a larger community that supports and cheers for each other.”
In addition to the relocation, Minister Edwin Tong has introduced several initiatives to make sports a more viable career option for Singaporeans. These initiatives are designed to support athletes in their sporting journeys, offering them opportunities to develop their skills and pursue their dreams.
One key initiative is the spexEducation Undergraduate Scholarship Programme, which supports spexScholars and spexPotential recipients in their undergraduate studies. Athletes can apply for the scholarship under two tracks: a dual career in sports and studies for those who wish to pursue both simultaneously, or a New Career track for athletes who plan to complete their degree after retiring from competitive sports. This initiative aims to support national athletes in pursuing their sporting aspirations while furthering their education and to strengthen the sports sector by encouraging potential scholars to enrol in sport-related university courses. The scholarship will cover the cost of the degree, provide a stipend under the spexScholarship or spexPotential programmes, and offer additional allowances.
Further supporting this initiative, Minister Edwin Tong shared that local autonomous universities have also committed to adopting athlete-friendly practices, including aptitude-based admission interviews and flexibility in accommodating training and competitions, to help national athletes cope with sports and studies.
Mr Tong also announced an increase in the spexScholarship stipend from 1 April 2025, and the introduction of monthly top-ups to scholarship holders’ Central Provident Fund (CPF) accounts.
Sharing the rationale for these initiatives, Mr Tong said: “We understand the pain in making the hard decisions, whether it is giving up the sport they love to pursue their (studies), to make sure that they have financial stability, or letting go of their (studies) to pursue their sporting aspirations. What we want to do is to minimise the trade-off between pursuing sporting excellence and furthering their studies and careers, so that they do not have to be forced to choose.”
Fencer and 2023 SEA Games champion Juliet Heng Jie Min, who is a spexScholar, shared her thoughts on the new initiatives: “Both the announcements aim at supporting us (athletes) so that we can continue training at high levels. The scholarship expands my education opportunities, while the CPF top-up helps athletes build savings earlier, providing greater security for housing, healthcare, and retirement, especially for those training full-time or aiming to compete at a high-performance level.”
Mr Melvin Lau, Vice-Chairperson of the Sporting Parents Network, expressed his support for the additional aid for athletes, particularly the spexEducation Undergraduate Scholarship. As a parent of former national gymnasts who graduated from Sports School and a current shuttler at the school, he would encourage his child to apply for the scholarship when eligible if it aligns with his goals. He believes the scholarship will ease the financial burden and ensure that the chosen university offers an ideal environment for high-level training while studying.
The recent announcements have sparked excitement within the sporting community, as the new initiatives are designed to make sports more accessible and a viable career pathway for aspiring and current athletes. With these changes, the next chapter for sports in Singapore looks promising, and we eagerly anticipate making more dreams come true.
At the National Day Rally 2024, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong announced that Singapore Sports School will be relocating to the Kallang precinct as part of the Kallang Alive Masterplan. Kallang will be developed further as the “home” of Team Singapore where sport facilities, sports science, and medicine facilities, and several National Sports Associations will be housed and integrated in a single location to enhance synergy.
On the announcement, Principal Ong Kim Soon shared, “Prime Minister’s announcement is a big step forward for Singaporeans and sports in Singapore. It is an affirmation of the government’s commitment to support multiple pathways to success and a broadening of the definition of success and meaningful living in Singapore.”
Lim Chea Rong, Head Coach of the Shooting Academy, shared, “As a former athlete and a coach at Sports School since 2010, I have witnessed the positive impact of training alongside top athletes. Additionally, there will be greater synergy in coaching resources, which can elevate coaching standards. By learning from each other’s training methods and strengths, coaches can improve the quality of coaching. Also, closer collaboration with the NSAs would ensure a seamless development pathway. Lastly, this integration will foster a sense of belonging to Team Singapore, building a larger community that supports and cheers for each other.”
In addition to the relocation, Minister Edwin Tong has introduced several initiatives to make sports a more viable career option for Singaporeans. These initiatives are designed to support athletes in their sporting journeys, offering them opportunities to develop their skills and pursue their dreams.
One key initiative is the spexEducation Undergraduate Scholarship Programme, which supports spexScholars and spexPotential recipients in their undergraduate studies. Athletes can apply for the scholarship under two tracks: a dual career in sports and studies for those who wish to pursue both simultaneously, or a New Career track for athletes who plan to complete their degree after retiring from competitive sports. This initiative aims to support national athletes in pursuing their sporting aspirations while furthering their education and to strengthen the sports sector by encouraging potential scholars to enrol in sport-related university courses. The scholarship will cover the cost of the degree, provide a stipend under the spexScholarship or spexPotential programmes, and offer additional allowances.
Further supporting this initiative, Minister Edwin Tong shared that local autonomous universities have also committed to adopting athlete-friendly practices, including aptitude-based admission interviews and flexibility in accommodating training and competitions, to help national athletes cope with sports and studies.
Mr Tong also announced an increase in the spexScholarship stipend from 1 April 2025, and the introduction of monthly top-ups to scholarship holders’ Central Provident Fund (CPF) accounts.
Sharing the rationale for these initiatives, Mr Tong said: “We understand the pain in making the hard decisions, whether it is giving up the sport they love to pursue their (studies), to make sure that they have financial stability, or letting go of their (studies) to pursue their sporting aspirations. What we want to do is to minimise the trade-off between pursuing sporting excellence and furthering their studies and careers, so that they do not have to be forced to choose.”
Fencer and 2023 SEA Games champion Juliet Heng Jie Min, who is a spexScholar, shared her thoughts on the new initiatives: “Both the announcements aim at supporting us (athletes) so that we can continue training at high levels. The scholarship expands my education opportunities, while the CPF top-up helps athletes build savings earlier, providing greater security for housing, healthcare, and retirement, especially for those training full-time or aiming to compete at a high-performance level.”
Mr Melvin Lau, Vice-Chairperson of the Sporting Parents Network, expressed his support for the additional aid for athletes, particularly the spexEducation Undergraduate Scholarship. As a parent of former national gymnasts who graduated from Sports School and a current shuttler at the school, he would encourage his child to apply for the scholarship when eligible if it aligns with his goals. He believes the scholarship will ease the financial burden and ensure that the chosen university offers an ideal environment for high-level training while studying.
The recent announcements have sparked excitement within the sporting community, as the new initiatives are designed to make sports more accessible and a viable career pathway for aspiring and current athletes. With these changes, the next chapter for sports in Singapore looks promising, and we eagerly anticipate making more dreams come true.
