Turning Dreams Into Reality

Athlete-Friendly Academic Programmes: International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

Some may have thought that alumnus Chong Wei Guan had a senseless dream to be the next Usain Bolt. However, his long-term dream to be a track and field star was everything to Wei Guan. To inch towards his dream, Wei Guan set his eyes on making it to Singapore Sports School’s sprint team.

“Back then, in 2012, my grades were average and so was my performance on the track. I am really grateful that the Track and Field Academy took a chance on me and accepted me into the school,” shared Wei Guan, who did not know that a life-changing experience would be unfolding before him.

He spent six years as a student-athlete, progressing from secondary education to the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). During his time in school, the go-getter unleashed his potential on the track and his studies. One of his most defining moments was when he broke a 13-year meet record in 14.13s in 2018. Despite his "track" record, he did exceptionally well in his studies and graduated as one of his cohort’s top student-athletes, scoring an impressive 43 points out of a maximum score of 45.

Juggling the academic rigour of the IBDP and improving himself on the track were however not without any challenges. He attributed his success to the athlete-friendly academic support, and supportive teachers and coaches who had helped him along the way.

“Boarding school helped me to utilise my time efficiently because I did not have to spend a lot of time travelling between classes, training and home. We also had great studying facilities and resources in the IB centre which really helped me focus on my work. The most important part of this programme were the dedicated teachers that we had. The teachers worked tirelessly to help us even though we were a really stressed out and literally, a ‘playful’ bunch. Our coaches also understood our commitments, and worked with us to help us manage our time. I would not be who I am without my teachers and coaches,” shared Wei Guan, who is currently enlisted in National Service. He plans to further his studies in computer science or engineering at an overseas university, and concurrently train competitively in future.

Like her senior, national water polo player, Michelle Tan Ting Yee, has dreams of bringing home a gold medal from the Southeast Asian Games and compete at an international level. At just 16 years old, she was part of the Women’s Water Polo team that returned home from the Philippines 2019 Southeast Asian Games with a silver medal.

With her dream in mind, she joined the Sports School this year after taking her GCE O-Level examinations because of Sports School’s athlete-friendly programmes, sport support and academic support. She took up the Extended IBDP programme, which is only offered at Sports School locally, as it allows her to stretch the completion of her studies over a longer period so that she put greater focus on her sports dreams.

“With the extended IBDP, I have more time to balance both my water polo commitment and studies, as well as get sufficient rest. In addition, the academic make-up system allows me to pursue overseas trainings and competitions without neglecting my studies as my teachers are willing to go through the lessons that I missed,” said Michelle.

Interested to find out more about application into our IBDP programme through the Direct School Admission? Click here.