Chia Boon Leong, only Singaporean footballer to play in Olympics, dies aged 97
SINGAPORE — Days before the Singapore national football team begin their latest AFF Championship campaign, the community was hit with news that Chia Boon Leong - the only Singaporean footballer to play in the Olympics - died on Tuesday (20 December) at the age of 97.
Affectionately nicknamed "Twinkletoes" for his superb footwork and control, Chia was renowned throughout Southeast Asia in the 1940s and 1950s, and represented China at the 1948 London Olympics, where they lost 0-4 to Turkey in their only match.
Two other Singaporeans - fullback Chua Boon Lay and goalkeeper Chu Chee Seng - went to the Olympics but never played.
Born on New Year's Day in 1925, Chia grew up in Pasir Panjang and started playing five-a-side football with a tennis ball on a sandy pitch. He was already a promising youngster by the time he was studying at Raffles Institution, but was deemed too short at 1.6m.
Despite the rejection, Chia co-founded the Pasir Panjang Rovers in 1938, and would help them win the Singapore Amateur Football Association League a decade later.
Won 3 Malaysia Cups for Singapore
With the Singapore team, Chia won a hat-trick of Malaysia Cups from 1950 to 1952, scoring in the 2-0 final victory over Penang in 1950.
Chia told the Singapore Olympics website that he had probably caught the Olympics selectors' eyes when he represented Lien Hwa, a Chinese selection side that toured Asia for 42 days in 1947. He had played in all of their 23 matches, and finished as top scorer, thrilling the crowds with his feints and dribbles.
Chia hung up his boots at the relatively young age of 30, and became a council member of the Football Association of Singapore. He was also team manager of the national team on a part-time basis between 1977 and 1980.
He had made a public appearance as recently as 31 August for a book launch at Jalan Besar Stadium, beaming alongside his wife Lily Lim as a plaster cast of his left foot was unveiled.
Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, paid tribute to Chia in a Facebook post on Tuesday night.
"For a man who clearly loves the game, Boon Leong gave his best years to Singaporean football, winning three Malaya Cups in a row from 1950 to 1952," he wrote.
"It is perhaps fitting, that Boon Leong managed to witness his favourite player, Lionel Messi, finally lifting the World Cup before his passing.
"While we will never get to witness the marauding dribbles Boon Leong made down the pitch whilst terrorising opponents – we can share his passion for football, and the contributions he has made to our football folklore."
Lions name squad for AFF Cup
On Tuesday, the Lions head coach Takayuki Nishigaya also named a final squad of 23 players for the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup.
Five players will be part of a Singapore squad at the tournament for the first time – defenders Christopher van Huizen, Joshua Pereira and Ryhan Stewart, midfielders Shah Shahiran and Farhan Zulkifli.
Ikhsan Fandi and Adam Swandi are ruled out through injury, while Taufik Suparno has withdrawn due to family reasons.
Goalkeeper Hassan Sunny is set to be involved for a record ninth time at an AFF Championship with the Lions, surpassing Shahril Ishak and Baihakki Khaizan (both eight).
The Lions will begin their Group B campaign at home against Myanmar on Saturday, before going on to face Laos, Vietnam and Malaysia over the subsequent 10 days.
Singapore team - goalkeepers: Hassan Sunny, Syazwan Buhari, Zaiful Nizam. Defenders: Amirul Adli, Christopher van Huizen, Hariss Harun, Irfan Fandi, Joshua Pereira, Nazrul Nazari, Ryhan Stewart, Shakir Hamzah. Midfielders: Farhan Zulkifli, Hafiz Nor, Hami Syahin, M. Anumanthan, Shahdan Sulaiman, Shah Shahiran, Song Uiyoung, Zulfahmi Arifin. Forwards: Amy Recha, Faris Ramli, Ilhan Fandi, Shawal Anuar.
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