WEEKLY ROUND-UP: Sports happenings in Singapore (1-7 Feb)

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

Lions head coach Tatsuma Yoshida extends contract to Dec 2022

The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) announced on Friday (5 February) that Tatsuma Yoshida will continue to serve as the men’s national team head coach until December 2022.

Yoshida, 46, was appointed to the role on 1 June 2019 on an initial two-year deal, and has since taken charge of nine matches – four friendlies and five World Cup qualifiers. Encouraging performances in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers saw the Lions notch up two victories and a draw.

“(Last year) was not a normal year as the World Cup qualifiers were postponed and we could not play any international games,” said Yoshida in a media release on Friday.

“I was disappointed about that but after having extensive discussions with the FAS as well as my family, it was an easy decision for me to continue this project in Singapore becauseI believe we can still improve and are on our way to becoming a better team.”

Lions captain Hariss Harun said the national team has enjoyed working under Yoshida since he took charge.

“The players have benefitted from his methods and beliefs and improved under his guidance. Coach Tatsuma is also very approachable and, together with the rest of the backroom staff, has helped to foster a strong team spirit,” he said.

Yoshida is set to lead the Lions through the remainder of the World Cup qualifiers when they are slated to resume in March, although the schedule is pending confirmation. He will also take the Lions through the next AFF Suzuki Cup, which was rescheduled from last year to December this year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Former YOG footballer Dzukhilan Jeevamani selected for IOC programme

Dzukhilan Jeevamani, a member of Singapore’s 2010 Youth Olympics football team, was selected by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as one of 25 future leaders for a four-year IOC Young Leaders programme supported by worldwide Olympic partner Panasonic.

The aim of the programme is to help future leaders build sustainable, sport-focused social businesses from idea to fruition, supported by weekly learning modules and leadership opportunities.

Jeevamani, 25, will undergo an induction programme with the IOC in the coming weeks. He then intends to use football as a medium to empower three groups of people: girls aged five to 15, the physically disabled, and intellectually impaired.

The final-year University College Dublin undergraduate, who has retired from football after stints with the Young Lions and Geylang International, was selected from 350 candidates. He is the fourth Singaporean to be part of the programme, following fencer Rania Rahardja and sailors Cecilia Low and Sean Lee.

Singapore Sports Hub lines up activities for CNY period

The Singapore Sports Hub has lined up a series of sporting activities for the Chinese New Year season.

Go on a “Huat Run” on the 888-metre red lane around the 100Plus Promenade, and the first 88 participants to complete the run between 6 and 26 February will each receive a festive F&N goodie bag.

To take part, take a picture with the prosperity pineapple placed along the route, post it on your Instagram account with the hashtags #AllLaiRun and #MySgSportsHub and show it to the customer care officers at the Visitors Centre to redeem the gift. The top three posts with the most “likes” stand to win red packets, with the biggest “ang pow” worth $288.

The Sports Hub will also be presenting a specially-curated light show to welcome the Chinese New Year, from 7pm to 11pm between 7 and 19 February. Watch the National Stadium transform into a bright golden dome, with auspicious sparkling red and yellow lights as a shining symbol of good fortune.

Corning Singapore’s fundraising initiative raises $19,426 to SDSC

Technology company Corning Singapore Holdings presented a donation of $19,426 to the Singapore Disability Sports Council (SDSC) as part of its month-long fundraising initiative “The Corning Well-Being Challenge” that concluded at the end of last year.

The challenge invited Corning employees to maintain both physical fitness and psychological well-being, as they took part in a variety of wellness activities including weight-loss targets, physical exercise, cooking healthy meals for colleagues, arts and craft projects, a virtual mini concert and a “Wellness with SDSC” WebEx session.

This is the third year in a row that Corning employees have rallied together to contribute to SDSC’s cause. In 2018, as part of OCBC Cycle 2018, a team of 21 Corning Singapore employees raised $6,500 for SDSC by completing innovative challenges during the event.In 2019, they raised $15,528 through an internal fundraiser that went towards enabling para athletes to participate in the OCBC Cycle 2019 and SDSC’s athletics development team.

Corning’s donation will be matched dollar-for-dollar under the One Team Singapore Fund administered by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth.

ONE: Fists of Fury to be held on 26 Feb at Indoor Stadium

Singapore-based mixed martial arts company ONE Championship has announced the full card for ONE: Fists of Fury, which will broadcasts live on 26 February from the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Tickets for the fight event are on sale on Ticketmaster.sg. Patrons who purchase tickets will receive a limited-edition ONE Chinese New Year bundle, including a “Year of the Ox” T-shirt, a red packet set, and more while supplies last.

The card will feature the following bouts:

• In the main event, reigning ONE flyweight kickboxing world champion Ilias Ennahachi faces second-ranked Superlek Kiatmoo9.

• In the co-main event, Giorgio Petrosyan returns to action in a featherweight rematch against kickboxing world champion Davit Kiria.

• Reigning ONE flyweight muay thai world champion Rodtang Jitmuangnon faces a debuting Alejandro Rivas.

• Third-ranked bantamweight kickboxing contender Hiroki Akimoto faces fourth-ranked Zhang Chenglong in a rematch of their October bout.

• Thailand’s Wondergirl Fairtex faces Filipino-American striker Jackielou Buntan in a strawweight bout.

• Victoria Lee makes her ONE debut against Sunisa Srisen in an atomweight contest.

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