WEEKLY ROUND-UP: Sports happenings in Singapore (14-20 Nov)

SINGAPORE — Here is a round-up of sports events and developments in Singapore in the past week (14 to 20 November):

Hougang edge Tampines to win Singapore Cup, their first-ever trophy

Hougang United won their first trophy in club history, when they came from behind to claim a thrilling 3-2 win over defending champions Tampines Rovers to clinch the 2022 Singapore Cup at Jalan Besar Stadium on Saturday (19 November).

Midfielder Kristijan Krajcek was the hero for the Cheetahs, becoming the first player to score a hat-trick in the Singapore Cup final as he pounced to find the net in the 17th, 57th and 79th minutes.

Tampines replied through Taufik Suparno (39th minute) and Irfan Najeeb (47th).

In the third-place playoff match on Friday, Albirex Niigata (Singapore) defeated Balestier Khalsa 3-2.

Great East Women's Run makes return to physical mass run format

Over 4,000 runners took part in the 16th edition of the Great Eastern Women’s Run (GEWR) at the Singapore Sports Hub on Sunday (20 November), as the all-women’s event returned to its physical mass run format for the first time since 2019.

Starting at Nicoll Highway, participants were treated to a scenic run through some of Singapore’s most picturesque landscapes, before finishing in the National Stadium. Guest-of-honour Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, flagged off the 5km race and presented the trophies and cash prizes to the top three Elite 21.1km winners.

In the elite 21.1km category, defending champion Rachel See retained her title, clocking 1hr 22min 7sec, improved on her winning time last year. SEA Games Singapore representative Jasmine Goh and Ironman 70.3 Langkawi 2022 champion Choo Ling Er, both making their debuts in the race, came in second and third place respectively.

This year, Great Eastern staff and financial representatives led a fundraising initiative since mid-September, and raised $220,000 in support of Daughters Of Tomorrow and Singapore Cancer Society.

ElShobagy, King crowned champions at Singapore Squash Open

Mohamed ElShorbagy and Joelle King were crowned men's and women’s champions at the Marigold Singapore Squash Open on Sunday (21 November) after a week of squash action at the OCBC Arena.

Englishman Mohamed ElShorbagy, the world No. 3 and 2017 world champion, enjoyed a smooth 3-0 (11-6, 11-6, 11-8) victory over reigning US Open champion Diego Elias of Peru to clinch his fourth title this season.

Meanwhile, world No.5 King of New Zealand saved game ball in the second game en route to her 3-0 (11-6, 12-10, 11-4) triumph over Egyptian world No. 6 Nour El Tayeb.

The Singapore Squash Open finals were played in a glass show court specially built for the tournament at the OCBC Arena. The US$220,000 event is the first PSA World Tour Gold event to be held in Singapore.

Aloysius Yapp wins both 9-ball, 10-ball events at Meucci Classic

Singapore’s top pool player Aloysius Yapp has won both the 9-ball and 10-ball competitions at the Meucci Classic at Racks Billiards in Sanford, Florida.

The Straits Times reported that the 26-year-old avenged his Las Vegas Open final loss to Wiktor Zielinski by beating the world No. 20 Pole 11-3 in the 10-ball final on Monday (14 November) to claim a US$7,000 (S$9,600) winner’s cheque.

A couple of hours later, the world No. 25 Yapp beat Austria’s 18th-ranked Maximilian Lechner 9-5 in the 9-ball final and cashed in for another US$3,100.

In all, he won 13 straight matches in both competitions. Yapp will round up his season with the World 8-Ball Championship this week.

Danelle Tan is 1st S'porean to be accepted in NCAA Div 1 football programme

Women's national footballer Danelle Tan, 18, has accepted a part athletic scholarship offer by the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. When she enters her school in 2024, she will become the first Singapore player to be accepted into an NCAA Division I football programme.

The attacking midfielder, who has 15 international caps for Singapore, is currently studying in Mill Hill school in Britain. She was the first female to represent Mill Hill’s first XI boys' team.

Danelle had moved to Britain in early 2022 to pursue her dreams of earning a professional contract. Her move to William and Mary will ensure she acquires a top class education while furthering her football development.

Water polo teams at Asian Water Polo Championships

The national men’s and women’s water polo teams finished sixth and fifth respectively at the Asian Water Polo Championships in Samut Prakan, Thailand.

The Straits Times reported that the men’s team, who lost 7-14 to South Korea in the fifth-place play-off, came in one spot ahead of South-east Asian rivals Thailand, whom they had beaten 12-9 in an earlier classification match on Sunday (13 November).

They had started the 10-team competition with wins over Kuwait (17-8) and Hong Kong (19-11) but lost 6-22 to eventual winners Japan and 6-25 to China, to finish third in the five-team group. In the quarter-finals, they lost 8-18 to bronze medallists Kazakhstan.

The women’s team wrapped up their campaign with an 18-4 victory over South Korea on Monday to secure their fifth-place finish in the six-team competition.

Christian Lee wins ONE welterweight world title

ONE lightweight world champion Christian Lee added the ONE welterweight world title to his trophy case by stopping Kiamrian Abbasov in round four of the main event of "ONE on Prime Video 4: Abbasov vs. Lee" at Singapore Indoor Stadium on Saturday (19 November).

Prior to the bout, Abbasov failed to pass weight and hydration, which caused him to lose the welterweight belt on the scale. Only Lee was eligible to win the world title, and he did so with an impressive display of striking and grappling.

In the co-main event, ONE flyweight muay thai world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon retained his belt with a one-sided beatdown of ONE strawweight muay thai world champion Joseph Lasiri. After five rounds, all three judges scored the bout in favour of Rodtang to win by unanimous decision.

Lead card results - Muay Thai - Catchweight: Jonathan Haggerty def. Vladimir Kuzmin via majority decision. MMA - Welterweight: Ruslan Emilbek Lulu def. Isi Fitikefu via split decision. Submission Grappling - Atomweight: Danielle Kelly def. Mariia Molchanova via rear-naked choke at 2:15. Muay Thai - Lightweight: Liam Nolan def. Eddie Abasolo via unanimous decision.

Main card results - MMA - Catchweight: Christian Lee def. Kiamrian Abbasov via TKO at 4:20 of R4. Muay Thai - Flyweight: Rodtang Jitmuangnon def. Joseph Lasiri via unanimous decision. MMA - Catchweight: Stephen Loman def. Bibiano Fernandes via unanimous decision. Muay Thai - Welterweight: Cosmo Alexandre def. Juan Cervantes via KO at 1:23 of R2. MMA - Bantamweight: Kim Jae Woong def. Kevin Belingon via TKO at 2:33 of R1.

Sentosa Golf Club lands two accolades at World Golf Awards

Sentosa Golf Club has won two accolades at the annual World Golf Awards ceremony in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday (16 November).

It was named the "World’s Best Eco-Friendly Golf Facility" for the third consecutive year, as well as "Asia’s Best Golf Course", an award unveiled for the first time this year.

In the past year, Sentosa Golf Club has not only continued to work towards its goal of becoming the world’s first carbon neutral golf club, but also achieved GEO Certification status for its preservation of the environment and ongoing development of sustainable initiatives.

Its ongoing "Game On" sustainability campaign also acts as a reminder and awareness driver within the community, of the importance of the global golf industry creating climate responsibility and protecting the environment.

The Serapong Course has also received the "Asia’s Best Golf Course" award for its unique personality, overall character, and world-class tournament conditions, which have made it one of the region’s most renowned golf courses.

Singapore to send 13 athletes to inaugural SEA Deaf Games in KL

Singapore will be sending 13 deaf athletes to compete in three sports - athletics, badminton and bowling - at the inaugural SEA Deaf Games in Kuala Lumpur from 21 to 27 November.

Chef de mission Lim Jia Yi received the state flag from Eric Chua, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, at Our Tampines Hub on Saturday (19 November).

Also at the ceremony were athletes and officials who returned from the recent Virtus Oceania Asia (OA) Games. The team of nine para-athletes returned with six medals (one gold, four silver, and one bronze), and nine personal bests from the inaugural Games.

A donation from Micron Foundation to the Singapore Disability Sports Council had provided funding for the Virtus OA delegation, and will now support the SEA Deaf Games mission.

Top Valencia executives in Singapore for strategic discussions

A delegation of executives from Spanish LaLiga side Valencia - club president Chan Lay Hoon, head coach Gennaro Gattuso, technical director Miguel Ángel Corona, and corporate director and club spokesperson Javier Solís - were in Singapore last week for meetings with majority shareholder Peter Lim related to the development of their strategic and sporting plan.

They also discussed the possibilities for the upcoming winter transfer window to reinforce the squad. Throughout the meetings, the executives highlighted their satisfaction with the rapid adaptation to the change of style Gattuso.

The delegation also visited the LaLiga offices in Singapore, seeking to review the work done so far in the region by both organisations, and to lay the groundwork for continued work to bring LaLiga and the essence of Valencia to football fans in Singapore and Southeast Asia.

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