What can Sweden teach Singapore?

We did a crazy thing yesterday. I reached Siew's place at 5:40 am and we jogged for a good 47 min 27 sec. Wei joined us for a portion of the run. =) I was totally exhausted by the end of the day but it felt good. The run was enjoyable. Fresh air, chirping of the crickets, and our heavy footsteps ... haha …

And today I made my second appearance at Flynn Park after a gap of 4 or 5 weeks from the first. I only managed to play one match as those guys would start by 5:30 pm and end around 8 pm. I reached around 7 pm after making much effort to leave my workplace earlier. Need to manage that a bit better.

Yup, so Thursday would be my “come home early and rest” day. It is nice to be lazing on my bed and having some time on my own. This article came at the right time.

But my brief encounter with the set-up in Sweden leads me to conclude that limitless millions of lottery funding will never replace or create the joy of athletics. And there is no point building facilities unless you can engender the enthusiasm to fill them.

How true …

Reporter XXX strikes again

For those who have read the previous post ... Yup, Wah Siew said so herself! See her comments in bold. Haha ...

But jokes aside ... It was such aspiring seniors that movitated me to train hard and set my sights high.

It is a pity that this respected senior, compatible training partner and worthy opponent is currently not playing ... Well, I remain optimistic though ... =)

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From the very 1st edition of our Squash newsletter "STRIKE" that was published sometime July/August 1996 ...

Interview with Tan Wah Siew

Tan Wah Siew, an ex-RGS girl (now studying in RJC), proved herself in the recent Milo Nationals by beating National representatives Jasmine Tiw and Caroline Baptista, emerging first runners-up in the U19 Girls' Open Championships. All these successes are result of her hard work for the past 4 years.

Reporter XXX catches up with Tan Wah Siew, the player who "used to be average" and invites her to share her secrets of success ...

XXX: Hi, Wah Siew. How's life?

TWS: (pondering) It's okay.

XXX: (devilish grin) Ready for the interview?

TWS: (with her big eyes staring suspiciously at me) So what are you up to?

XXX: Nothing much. Just a few questions. So what made you join squash when you were Sec 1?

TWS: I decided that entering RGS was going to change the rest of my life. I wanted to play a sport because I did not get the chance to do that in primary school. I guess I chose squash because it was an indoor sport: I could play rain or shine.

XXX: (in a more serious tone) Have you regretted your decision?

TWS: I have definitely not regretted it. Playing squash has made me a more disciplined person and I have learnt that facing up to our fears is the best way to overcome them. I am learning new things every single day. It has been extremely fulfilling and I have thoroughly enjoyed myself for the last 4 years.

XXX: How good were you when you first started?

TWS: Frankly, I was quite terrible. I think I could barely hit the ball when I just started playing. Ball sense and talent were certainly not things you would have connected me with.

XXX: (Could not believe my ears. Who could image this excellent player being lousy?) What drove you to work so hard?

TWS: It was the desire to be an extremely good player. Quite a few of us were training hard in Sec 2 and 3 and so we spurred each other on. I did not know exactly what to do to achieve my goal at first, so I just trained as hard as I could. Right now, with Ansari’s help, training has become more defined.

XXX: What has squash done to you?

TWS: Squash has made me a better person. I have learnt to withstand pain during training and to compete and fight no matter what the odds are. I have also learnt, to a certain extent, to break out of my own limitations and to set myself free so that I can perform.

XXX: (eyes wide open and jaws dropping, bewildered at the profound answer. On regaining my composure) Has training affected your studies?

TWS: Training has not affected my studies. If anything, training has taught me to manage my time better so that I can train, do my work and get enough sleep. This only proves that the Singaporean belief that people who play sports cannot do well on their studies is not true.

XXX: (That is very true. Wah Siew obtained good results for her “O” level examinations last year.) What do you wish to achieve in the coming years?

TWS: (without any hesitation) I want to represent the Singapore women’s team in international competitions and to give of my best always.

XXX: (Getting quite bored with such ‘cheem’ stuff and deciding to ask something more related to myself.) How do you think seniors and juniors should treat each other?

TWS: The seniors should be ever willing to help the juniors while the juniors should respect the seniors. The team should be spirited and both seniors and juniors should spur one another onto greater heights.

XXX: (sigh! Another of those answers. Suddenly something popped into my mind. Feeling quite excited and flashing my ever-so-innocent smile) I was told by ABC that you have never “fallen in love”. How do you manage to keep your mind on squash and refrain from guys for so long?

TWS: I love the sport.

XXX: (disappointed look. I was expecting some kind of interesting answer. Looking at the time, I decided to ask the final question.) What do you have to say to us juniors out there?

TWS: (deep in thought) Move in the direction of your dreams, whatever they may be, for you may meet with unexpected success in the coming hours.

XXX: (wow, totally impressed and inspired. But my hands are now aching due to the vigourous jotting down of the answers.) That is all I have, Wah Siew. Thanks for answering my questions.

TWS: (smilingly) It’s my pleasure.

We shook hands (mine still in pain, of course) and went our separate ways.

Signing off
Reporter XXX

Musings: When the lights went off

Nicol David was recently in town for the inaugural Women’s CIMB Singapore Masters. That sparked off conversations on the match which Wah Siew had against Nicol David in the Asian Squash Junior Circuit Grand Final way back in November 1998. Wah Siew was leading 8-6 in the first game when there was a power trip. After the lights came on, the match took a different turn. That was probably the closest anyone had gone to take a game off Nicol David that year. Nicol went on to win the World Junior title in 1999 and repeated the feat in 2000.

We can only imagine what could have happened if the lights had not gone off. Maybe Wah Siew would have maintained her focus and momentum to win the first game. Who knows … But even reaching 8 points against Nicol was no trivial task. Wah Siew demonstrated the level of performance one is capable of. This is a good testament of the potential of our local athletes to perform and compete at international levels.

And we know it is not about talent. No offence intended but Wah Siew was never considered a sporting talent. But yet, Wah Siew reached a certain “zone” in that first game to give Nicol a good fight. That required a certain amount of work and she sure would need a lot more hard work to be able to maintain that level of performance for the entire match. So perhaps we should be asking ourselves how we could sustain and repeat that high level of performance. How could we best structure our system to bring about that desired result?

I believe it was in the following year that Wah Siew tore her ACL during the semi-finals against Joanne Yue in the Nationals Open. She was leading when she suddenly collapsed onto the floor. She went through an operation and it took her about 2 years before she could compete again, but even then not in full swing. Again, we ask ourselves whether there should be a more advanced system in preventing and treating injuries in Singapore. We should not be losing potential National Champions like that.

Eventually, I suppose Wah Siew decided to stop playing sometime after she started working. I do not take the liberty to discuss her decision. It’s a story for her to tell. But I have to point out that she played squash while doing her medical studies in NUS. Who says one cannot balance sports and school at the same time? Who says sports is only meant for those who can’t excel in studies?

Again, I bring up the example of Ellen Petersen. She did her medical school while vying for a berth in the World Top 20. Should we not think about emulating the system, environment and mindset they have in Denmark? We have enough sportsmen in Singapore who are raring to be challenged.

However we have been accustomed to a barrage of excuses (to be linked to the 7 myths) that explain away our failings in the sporting arena. It is time to tear apart these myths and see clearly the real issues impeding our athletes. Let us solve the fundamental issues. Let us be excited about the possibilities. There is so much that we can achieve as an individual, and together as a Nation.

Aren’t we a city of possibilities? Each individual Singaporean should be truly empowered with that knowledge.

PossibiCity?

A little prayer

I was very touched when Anna gave me the “amulet” this morning … and when I finally decided on its permanent location in my car, I felt a deep sense of blessing.

That reminded me to give thanks for what I have at this moment. And be grateful for the perfect Now.

Lightning McQueen: Okay, you got me out here. Where are we going?
Sally: I don't know.

The Harbours from Before: JC Life

I cannot and perhaps do not want to remember much about JC life.

I was still on the path of recovery … I continued to train hard, determined to climb back up the ladder which I had slipped from. The moments of clarity sustained my spirit and kept me hungry to come back. Guess it was something I had to go through, though I may have taken more time than I should have.

I suppose JC life did not make the path easier. There was great pressure in school where everybody seemed to be so anxious to do well. Conversations always revolved around tutorials, common tests, S-papers, overseas universities, scholarships etc … I detested it. I refused to engage in the milieu …

I was hardly awake in class and never quite kept up with my tutorials. I relied heavily on the notes and tutorials handed down to me from Weiting. Tutorial questions were still the same and on a few occasions, I actually handed up her work as mine. I kept away from school as much as possible and I was lucky to have a lenient class teacher who accepted many similar-sounding excuse letters endorsed by my very understanding mum.

I felt that too much focus was put into preparing us for the ‘A’ levels. Right after the first few months in JC1, we were constantly reminded of the impending examinations. We were constantly told that it would not be easy and we had to work hard for good results. Common tests were always made difficult so that half of the level could barely pass and the teachers would leverage on that to emphasize the need to study harder, or else we would not get our ‘A’s. That made many people very stressed.

I don’t know … I studied as much as I could with the time I had … I could more or less understand the basic concepts though I usually scored ‘O’s, ‘E’s and ‘F’s for my tests, especially for Further Maths. Yes, maybe there were some really bright students that needed extra challenging questions. And yes, maybe there was a need to differentiate the really good, good and average students. But there was no need to scare the majority of students and tell them that they were in risk of not doing well for the A levels when they did badly in a test that was set many times harder than the final examinations.

I remember this scene pretty well. I was in the lecture theatre listening to a particular Chemistry teacher who was flashing statistics of our prelim results. He was also comparing our results against the ‘A’ level results of the previous batch where about 80% scored an A. The 80% percentile for our batch scored a D in the prelim exam. I think I got a D too … Instead of encouraging us, he warned that we should not think such a high percentage would always score an A and those with Cs and below better pull up their socks and study harder. I think I sniggered at that remark but some of my classmates only got more stressed …

And I also remember walking out of the examination hall after one of the Chemistry papers wondering if I could have scored full marks for that paper.

Come on … 2 years of my life spent studying for an exam. An exam that could have been breezed through but instead made to seem so difficult. There was so much unnecessary pressure and fear. We could have been happier students.

It was as if failing to get 4 ‘A’s (and 2 distinctions) would cost one a bright future. In JC1, people scrambled to apply for S-papers, and in JC2 overseas universities …

I don’t know … on one hand, I felt some amount of pressure … on the other, I felt damn sick of the entire situation. In the end, I made no applications of any sort until I got my results. Then I sent in one application to NUS stating just that one course I wanted to take. I did not even bother to fill up the rest of the choices. However I made the effort to apply for a scholarship for financial reasons and I did get one.

Oh well, JC still leaves a distaste in my mouth … I guess I rather not think about it.