WEEKLY ROUND-UP: Sports happenings in Singapore (22-28 May)

SINGAPORE — Here is a round-up of sports events and developments in Singapore in the past week (22 to 28 May):

Top gymnasts to feature at Asian C'ships in Singapore

The 10th Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships - to be held at the Singapore Sports Hub from 10 to 18 June - will feature top gymnasts such as world champion Carlos Yulo (Philippines), Olympic medallists Lee Chih-kai (Taiwan) and Yeo Seo-jeong (South Korea), as well as Asian champion Ahmad Abu Al-Soud (Jordan).

The Asian Championships is a key event in the road to the 2024 Paris Olympics. Athletes will first have to do well at the event to earn their slots to this year’s World Championships, which is a qualifier for the Paris Olympics. The top five teams at the Asian Championships will also progress to the World Championships.

As such, the Asian nations will be bringing their best athletes to Singapore. Apart from Yulo, the Philippines contingent will also feature Aleah Finnegan and Emma Malabuyo, both of whom had previously represented the United States.

Finnegan, who is expected to be one of the favourites in the vault event, will face stiff competition from South Korea’s Yeo, the reigning Olympic bronze medallist. The pommel horse is another event set to serve up a mouth-watering rivalry, as Lee could be in for a showdown with Al-Soud.

Singapore’s SEA Games pommel horse silver medallist Kaeson Lim will also be relishing the chance to compete, as he and the rest of the Team Singapore athletes will be taking part in the Singapore Open as a warm-up to the Asian Championships.

The public can purchase their tickets for both the junior and senior championships at the official website. Tickets for a day pass start at $15.

14 picked so far to represent S'pore at Olympic Esports Week

A total of 14 esports players have been selected so far to represent Singapore in six virtual sports at the inaugural Olympic Esports Week, where they will be competing alongside over 100 international players at the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre from 22 to 25 June.

These Olympic Esports Series finalists were selected following a rigorous process led by the respective game publishers, international federations, and local national sports associations. To date, five titles have completed their selections and final qualifications are still going on for the remaining virtual sports.

The Olympic Esports Week's community activation trailer will be moving on to Galaxis@one-north from 29 May to 1 June, and it will continue to make its way across the island in the lead-up to the event. The public is welcome to visit the truck to try out some esports titles, compete to win attractive prizes and meet with key leaders in the world of esports and virtual sports.

Tickets to the Olympic Esports Week are available for purchase at Sistic, with prices starting from $10 per day. Three-day passes are available from $20, while day passes for families (two adults and two students) are also available from $25.

Tickets on sale for Women's World Floorball C'ships

Ticketing details of the Women's World Floorball Championships (WFC) - to be held at the Singapore Sports Hub from 2 to 10 December - were announced on Thursday (25 May). Fans will be able to catch 16 of the best floorball teams, including defending champions Sweden and reigning SEA Games gold medallists Singapore.

Sweden will open their title defence against Slovakia on 2 December, while hosts Singapore begin their campaign against France on the same day at the OCBC Arena. The semi-finals and final will take place at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on 9 and 10 December respectively.

Singapore will be looking to build on their triumph in Cambodia, where they won their third SEA Games gold in as many editions. The world No.13 side's previous best finish at the WFC was 12th in 2019, and they are drawn in Group C alongside France (27th), Australia (11th) and Germany (ninth).

Early bird sales have started from Friday, with prices starting from $20 for youths aged six to 17, and $32 for those above 18. Tickets are available at www.sistic.com.sg.

Great Eastern Women's Run on 29 October

The Great Eastern Women's Run will return to full pre-COVID-pandemic scale on 29 October, and will feature six categories of race activities, with the 21.1km half-marathon and 100m Princess Dash being the two additional categories from last year's edition.

This year also sees an increase of competitive categories with more prize money for local talents. In addition to the 21.1km elite by-invite-only category, cash prizes will also be awarded to the top three finishers of the 21.1km and 10km local categories, with more than $18,000 of prize money to be given out.

Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth, Low Yen Ling, launched the event on Wednesday (24 May), as well as the start of the fundraising campaign by Great Eastern's employees and financial representatives. For each kilometre the fundraisers clock until 30 September, Great Eastern will donate $1 to the beneficiary organisations Daughters Of Tomorrow and Singapore Cancer Society.

Register for the Great Eastern Women's Run with your female posse on the official website. To take part in the fund-raising drive for the two beneficiary organisations, visit this website.

Viktor Axelsen pulls out of Singapore Open with injury

Men's world No.1 Viktor Axelsen has withdrawn from the upcoming Singapore Badminton Open, after suffering a muscle strain on his left hamstring during the Sudirman Cup competition two weeks ago.

The 29-year-old Danish star retired during his quarter-final tie against Malaysia's Lee Zii Jia, and later revealed the injury on social media, adding that he may be "missing the next few tournaments".

Confirming Axelsen's withdrawal on Tuesday (23 May), event organisers Singapore Badminton Association said, "We have received a formal withdrawal request from Badminton Denmark that, due to an injury that requires medical attention and rest, Axelsen will not be able to participate in the tournament."

This is the second straight year in which Axelsen has had to withdraw from the Singapore Open. Last year, he pulled out citing a need to "rest and recharge". He has never won the Open, with semi-final finishes in 2012 and 2019 being his best showing at the tournament.

Yeo Boon Kiak wins elite category at TriFactor Bike CycleRun

The TriFactor Bike CycleRun event was held on Sunday (28 May) along Nicoll Highway, offering participants a thrilling experience on 7km of bike route and 5km of run route against the backdrop of the Singapore city skyline.

Singapore's Yeo Boon Kiak, 35, won the elite 49km championship title with a finish time of 1hr 12min 3sec, just ahead of second-placed Gareth Chui and third-placed Francois Balland.

TriFactor Bike CycleRun introduced new categories such as the bike-only race with individual and team options, including the first TriFactor Bike Team 56km relay, where cyclists formed teams and worked together to conquer the challenging 56km course.

The event also welcomed the Foldie 21km fun ride category, designed specifically for foldable bike enthusiasts.

Launch of Families100 Programme by OCBC

OCBC has partnered the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) to introduce a social uplift programme to proactively provide targeted help to 100 lower-income families with children living in rental flats.

This “Families100 Programme by OCBC" - launched on Sunday (22 May) by Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration Desmond Lee and OCBC group chief executive officer Helen Wong - will see 200 OCBC staff volunteers contributing an estimated 10,000 hours over a year to recommend and implement suitable solutions to these families.

The solutions will go beyond providing financial support, with other forms of assistance that include: providing access to sports and creative-centric avenues to help children and youths pursue their interest, and to motivate them to continue with their academic journey.

The volunteers have started the process of engaging 22 families, and the remaining 78 families will be progressively matched with OCBC staff volunteers over the next three months.

Record number of entries for Crocodile Challenge Cup

The Crocodile Challenge Cup saw a record 434 primary-school youth paddlers taking part from 22 to 28 May at the Singapore Table Tennis Association premises.

The finals were held on Sunday with Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, as guest of honour. Here are the winners of the various categories:

P1&2 boys’ singles: 1 Lian Yun Yi 2 Gu Junchen 3 Jayden Han. P1&2 girls’ singles: 1 Koh Jun Ning 2 Tang Xinyumeng 3 Evelyn Rose Gool. P3&4 boys’ singles: 1 Zhu Yixi 2 Kaspar Ching 3 Neo Cheng Ming. P3&4 girls’ singles: 1 Gu Xintian 2 Sophia Lim 3 Chloe Mao. P5&6 boys’ singles: 1 Zane Ong 2 Sean Chua 3 Benny Wang. P5&6 girls’ singles: 1 Kayleigh Mae Ng 2 Lyann Chiang 3 Zhang Yi Han.

Since its establishment in 2011, the Crocodile Challenge Cup has served as a platform for primary school players to enhance their individual abilities.

Archery Asia Cup to be held from 5 to 10 June

Singapore will be hosting Stage Three of the 2023 Archery Asia Cup for the first time in two decades, at the Bukit Gombak ActiveSG Stadium from 5 to 10 June.

The six-day world ranking tournament will feature over 200 national archers from 22 Asian countries. They will be competing in individual, team and mixed-team matches leading up to the 2024 Paris Olympics qualifiers.

Singapore will be sending 12 archers to compete, and they will be led by coach Chong Yap Lee. Among them are Contessa Loh and Madeleine Ong, who won gold and bronze medals respectively at the 2022 Hanoi SEA Games. They also won a bronze medal along with Nur Syahidah Alim for compound women's team at the recent Asia Cup Stage One in Taiwan.

Singapore had hosted the Asian Archery Grand Prix, the precursor to the Asia Cup, in 2003, when the national archers won two golds in the men's individual (compound) and men's team (compound).

Run for Inclusion to be held at Turf Club on 2 Sept

The ninth edition of Run for Inclusion will be held at the Singapore Turf Club on 2 September, providing opportunities for persons with special needs (PWSNs) to engage in physical activities.

Organised by Runninghour, the event will bring its signature Blindfold Walk after a three-year hiatus. Participants can wear a blindfold for the first 500 metres, paired with a sighted person, before swapping roles for the next 500 metres. They can also choose to complete the route without blindfolds.

Other options include personalised distances of up to 3km/5km run or walk, 10km run and an 18km cycling category with a tandem option specially designed to accommodate PWSNs.

Runninghour will conduct free workshops to raise awareness and provide guidance on supporting individuals with special needs in mainstream sports activities. Participants will gain valuable insights and practical strategies for guiding PWSNs while fostering friendships.

To sign up, visit Run for Inclusion's official website.

The Music Run to be staged alongside PTO Asian Open

The Music Run will make a return to Singapore, with its signature 5km fun run being one of the events staged alongside the Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) Asian Open races at the Marina Bay area on 19 and 20 August.

The run format incorporates a pumping soundtrack featuring everyone’s favourite hits, ensures that everyone has a place at the PTO Asian Open weekend/

Registration for The Music Run will open officially at 12 noon on Thursday (1 June), and those interested can pre-register their interest at the same site.

Puma sets up #RUNPUMACLUBSG run community

Sports apparel company Puma announced on Tuesday (23 May) its latest Singapore run community, #RUNPUMACLUBSG, a lifestyle run club that builds a community of like-minded runners.

The run club seeks provide runners the opportunity to experience the brand's apparel, while providing support, motivation and invigoration for their running and training journey.

With planned scenic group runs across various locations such as the Esplanade, Marina Bay Sands and Merlion Park, Puma seeks to prepare running enthusiasts for this year’s Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon.

It is also partnering with WOAH Group and Starbalm Singapore to provide complementary post-run quick bites for rejuvenations and quick muscle relief treatments for recovery.

#RUNPUMACLUBSG will be running every Thursday from 7pm to 9pm, and Saturdays or Sundays on the last week of each month from 7am to 9am. To sign up, visit this website.

New Certified Personal Trainer course by AFA

The Australian Fitness Academy (AFA) Asia has launched a brand-new Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) course in Singapore.

The course is predominantly completed online and includes interactive presentations, resources and practical assessments, with a realistic completion time of three to six months. It also requires students to complete a practical placement program to provide them with the opportunity to set up valuable relationships with local businesses and get real-world experience on the gym floor.

AFA has partnered with industry registration body FITREC, which will accredit graduates of the CPT course as qualified group-exercise instructors and personal trainers, providing credibility and recognition within the industry and connecting students to potential employment opportunities.

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