Singapore sports round-up (1-7 April): Inaugural spexPotential athletes batch, Singapore Aquatics in golf fundraiser

SINGAPORE — Here is a round-up of sports events and developments in Singapore in the past week (1 to 7 April):

Inaugural batch of 48 athletes for spexPotential programme

An inaugural batch of 48 athletes across 22 sports for the Sports Excellence Potential (spexPotential) programme offered by Sport Singapore (SportSG) was inducted in a ceremony at the Singapore Sports School auditorium on Tuesday (2 April).

First announced in August 2023, the spexPotential programme aims to identify young athletes with strong potential to succeed at the SEA Games level and beyond, and support them earlier in their sports journey. These athletes will receive support to prepare them for sporting excellence at the major Games, including financial and programmatic support.

Some of the athletes in the inaugural batch include paddler Ser Lin Qian, the 2022 Sportsgirl of the Year winner at the Singapore Sports Awards; wushu athlete Kassandra Ong; shuttler Nur Insyirah Khan; sprinter Thiruben Thana Rajan; and kayaking brothers Evan and Titus Ching.

Meanwhile, the Sports Excellence Scholarship (spexScholarship) programme also added 103 new athletes across 26 sports. The programme offers a comprehensive suite of support of top Singapore athletes, such as a monthly stipend; support for local and overseas training and competitions; sports equipment; access to sports science and sports nutrition; and a curated coaching programme.

Singapore Aquatics raise over S$430,000 in golf fundraiser

Singapore Aquatics (SAQ) raised over S$430,000 during its 85th anniversary golf fundraiser at the Tanah Merah Country Club's Tampines Course on Wednesday (3 April).

The fundraiser, graced by Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth and Second Minister for Law, as well as recently-retired Olympic gold medallist Joseph Schooling, was supported by sponsors such as Modern Wealth Academy, Splash Productions and Kin.

The money raised will be allocated across four key areas: grassroots development, development pathways for the five aquatic sports, high-performance programmes, and a general fund for coach and staff development.

The funds raised will also play a pivotal role in driving forward SAQ’s initiatives, including enhancing infrastructure and providing competitive opportunities for athletes ahead of major competitions such as the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2025 World Aquatic Championships in Singapore.

Tchoukball gets S$44,000 donation from merchants association

The Tchoukball Association of Singapore received a S$44,000 donation from the Ang Mo Kio Constituency Merchants Association during a dinner held at Gardens By The Bay on Thursday (4 April) to celebrate the association's 44th anniversary and the sport’s recent success and attainment of full national sports association status.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong - who is also Member of Parliament for Ang Mo Kio GRC - was the guest-of-honour at the event, with Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong also in attendance.

The donation was a result of a 44-day fundraising campaign that the merchant association had led earlier this year. Tong said such ground-up, community-led initiatives are key to building a sporting culture in Singapore.

SPL, WPL footballers in SGX financial literacy training camp

Close to 500 footballers from the Singapore Premier League (SPL) and Women’s Premier League (WPL) will be attending a financial literacy training camp later this month, to learn how to manage their personal finances and investments during their football careers and beyond.

In partnership with the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) and as part of the SGX Cares corporate social responsibility programme, the training camp is curated to equip the footballers with the fundamentals of financial management and investing, which are essential building blocks to financial resilience.

The SGX Cares financial literacy initiative has benefitted athletes in the past. In 2020, it partnered Singapore Sport Institute to enhance the financial literacy of Team Singapore athletes, while a series of workshops was conducted for Lion City Sailors football club in 2022.

SGX Academy will conduct the financial literacy training camp before the SPL season commences in May. Apart from footballers from the SPL and WPL first-team squads and coaching staff, under-21 footballers are also encouraged to attend the training camp.

No new club for 2024/25 Singapore Premier League season

There will not be a new football club joining the Singapore Premier League (SPL) ahead of the 2024/25 season, after the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) concluded the process of evaluating potential clubs.

FAS said in a media release on Wednesday (3 April) that it received several applications, of which one club - understood to be Tengah FC - was given in-principal approval to participate in the upcoming SPL season.

The shortlisted club entered into a due diligence process, which took longer than expected. Given the tight deadline prior to the commencement of the SPL in May, the club has decided not to contest in the 2024/25 season. Instead, it will focus on getting a team ready for the 2025/26 season.

Laguna National to host 1st leg of CLPG Q Series

The EFG China Ladies Professional Golfers (CLPG) Q Series - a four-part competitive event showcasing both professional and amateur golfers - will begin at Singapore's Laguna National Golf Resort Club on 27 and 28 May, marking the first time the series is bring held outside China. The dates of the next three events in the Series will be announced in due course.

The 54-hole tournament has a prize money of S$10,000, and will also serve as the qualifier for June's Singapore Ladies Masters. It will accommodate a field of up to 72 players, with a maximum of 18 participants from mainland China. Three spots, with one reserved for a Singaporean competitor, will be offered to the top three qualifiers.

Inaugurated in 2020, the CLPG Q Series is a development circuit that serves as the qualifying pathway to the flagship CLPG Tour. It is equivalent to the Epson Tour in the United States, offering its top finishers promotion to the LPGA Tour. The series is open not only to women professionals and amateurs, but also to amateur men, giving them the opportunity to earn World Amateur Golf Ranking points.

Turf Club holding photo walks ahead of final race in October

The Singapore Turf Club (STC) will host a series of photo walks from May to June this year, as it prepares to hold its final race on 5 October.

The photo walks will be conducted on 11 May, 18 May and 2 June, and are categorised into three categories - Architecture, Flora and Fauna and Racing. They will be led by renowned Singaporean photographers Lee Aik Soon and Lee Yik Keat.

Each photo walk will allow a maximum of 20 participants and take approximately two hours, and the event will culminate in a photo competition drawing entries from the walks as well as the wider public. Winning entries will be eligible for cash prizes of between $50 and $500 and will be displayed at a photo exhibition on the final race day.

Tour de Care raises over S$102,000 for underprivileged patients

Tour de Care, Home Nursing Foundation’s signature cycling challenge, concluded at the 100Plus Promenade@Singapore Sports Hub on 30 March, and has raised $102,485 with a total participation of 677 participants for both the physical and virtual cycling challenges.

Participants for the physical challenge cycled on closed routes along Nicoll Highway and Marina Bay in support of underprivileged patients. Rahayu Mahzam, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Health, flagged off the event and took part in the cycling challenge as well.

While the physical cycling challenge has concluded, there is an ongoing virtual cycling challenge until 29 April, which allows participants from anywhere in the world to cycle at their convenience with a STRAVA account to clock the distance cycled.

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