Top 10 Wins Of 2020

Reliving 2020

While 2020 may have been void of excitement from sport events, not all was doom and gloom at Singapore Sports School. Let us relive our top 10 “wins”.

1.    Good set of academic results

Student-athletes delivered creditable results in the national examinations (GCE O- and N-Levels) and International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme.

2.    Trevor Tan XuXuan competes at the Winter Youth Olympic Games

Trevor, an IBDP Year 5 ice skater, was one of the first three Singaporeans to compete at the Lausanne 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games from 9 to 22 January 2020. He competed in the Short Track Speed Skating 500m and 1,000m events. This was Singapore’s first representation in three editions of the Games.

3.    Top athlete awards go to…

Brazilian jiu-jitsu exponent Constance Lien Tian-En was named ST Athlete of the Year on 26 February for her achievements in 2019 which include golds at the BJJ World Championships in Los Angeles, USA, and Philippines 2019 Southeast Asian Games. The alumna is Singapore’s first world champion in the sport.

Koen Pang Yew En (Table Tennis) and Amita Marie Nicolette Berthier (Fencing), both former student-athletes, win the Best Sportsboy and Sportsgirl of the Year awards at Singapore National Olympic Council’s Singapore Sports Awards on 28 October. Koen is the first paddler to win the top sportsboy accolade since its inception in 1978. A total of 24 present and past student-athletes won awards that evening.

Singapore Schools Sports Council announced 39 winners of the Best Sportsboy and Best Sportsgirl Awards on 13 October. Thirteen student-athletes from eight sports were among that list.

4.    Virtually everything

Many events and competitions moved into the virtual space for the first time. Sports School’s e-Open House was launched on 4 April and featured an information session presented by Principal Ong Kim Soon and a live chat function for members of the public to have their queries answered. The e-Open House also showcased the various sport, academic and boarding programmes offered at Sports School through videos created by student-athletes.

The Shooting Academy took the opportunity of the lull in sport season to let shooters express their creativity through a fun toygun competition. On 22 May, athletes from Singapore Shooting Association’s national youth team participated in the Rubber Band Toy Gun Making Competition held on Google Meet. With their “do it yourself” (DIY) guns, challengers attempted to shoot down, using rubber bands, as many targets as possible. Prizes were given to the best shooters, as well as the person with the best-designed gun.

When physical lessons resumed in June, school events, such as Graduation Ceremony, orientation for the 2021 batch of student-athletes, and meetings with parents, continued on the virtual platforms.

5.    Home-based learning and training

Teaching and coaching moved online during the circuit breaker. Lessons and training were conducted via video conferencing platforms like Google Meet and Zoom. With the new Chromebooks that were loaned to Secondary 1 and 2 student-athletes at the start of the year, lessons could be conducted with greater ease. Digital capabilities were also enhanced as teachers and coaches quickly moved to prepare creative instructional video materials to help student-athletes in their acquisition of skills.

6.    First batch of DBS student-athletes graduate

The first batch of post-secondary student-athletes in the customised programme in collaboration with Ngee Ann Polytechnic graduated in May. The cohort which commenced studies in 2017 completed the Diploma in Business Studies (Entrepreneurship Management Option) with excellent results. National paddler Eunice Lim Zoe scored the highest among the eight student-athletes, graduating with a Diploma with Merit that’s accorded to the top 10 per cent of students in the course. She also received the Activa Media Prize for attaining the most outstanding academic performance in the Entrepreneurship Management Option.

7.    Fundraising by student-athletes

COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019): One of the most popular words of 2020. With the pandemic disrupting the lives of many globally, netballer Smita Ishana Rai decided to lend a helping hand to those in need. The Secondary 4 student-athlete launched #SSPWECARE – The Invictus Fund on 5 May to collect donations for The Invictus Fund (TIF). Proceeds from the TIF went towards more than 80 social service agencies, helping them stay “well-oiled” in their operations to continue supporting the vulnerable communities during the pandemic. Over two weeks, more than $7,500 was raised through the Giving.sg platform.

Nadine Fateha Zuraimy, a Secondary 3 fencer, also took the initiative to raise funds for the victims of the 4 August blast in Beirut, capital of Lebanon. Heartbroken upon hearing the news, she rallied schoolmates and staff to contribute to the cause by selling homemade cookies baked over several weeks. The donations were made through Singapore Red Cross Society.

8.    Appreciation notes and care packs

Student-athletes expressed their appreciation and gratitude to Singapore’s healthcare workers and frontline workers for their tireless service towards ensuring the safety of everyone. Handwritten notes of appreciation and care packs were prepared and given to hospital staff and the School’s dining, cleaning, facility maintenance, laundry, and security contract staff.

During the National Day celebration on 7 August, the student-athlete population also wrote cards and crafted photo frames to accompany care packs which were prepared by the IBDP student-athletes for foreign workers living in the temporary dormitory at the former Innova Junior College adjacent to Sports School.

9.    Education and Career Guidance with alumni

Four alumni – Aloysius Tan Zi Heng (Badminton Academy), Christopher Hwang Eu Wei (Bowling Academy), Janice Yun Hui Wen (Table Tennis Academy) and Matthew Goh Yu Jie (Track an Field Academy) – met online with post-secondary student-athletes to share insights about their respective industries during an Education and Career Guidance (ECG) session on 20 August. The session sought to guide current student-athletes in their career choices in a relatable manner due to similar experiences that the speakers shared with their audience.

10.    First-ever Talent Optimisation Programme

Sports School collaborated with the National Youth Sports Institute (NYSI) and several National Sports Associations (NSA) to uncover “hidden” talent that student-athletes may have in other sports. The pilot Talent Optimisation Programme on 11 November exposed student-athletes to Weightlifting, Wrestling, Petanque, Cycling, Canoeing/Kayaking, and Water Polo. Experts from NYSI and respective NSAs were present to identify talent and potential in student-athletes.