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BY BRYNA DJUHAR
THEY were thousands of miles away from Beijing's "Water Cube", the place where Tao Li was to swim her Olympic 100m butterfly final.
But close to 60 of her classmates and staff at the Singapore Sports School were undeterred, cheering her on heartily yesterday, as if they were right by the poolside.
The team spirit was on a high in the minutes leading up to the final, as they gathered around the television set in the Sports School's recreation room.
Wild hoots erupted when Tao, the first Singaporean swimmer to qualify for an Olympics final, entered the arena.
Then, a sudden hush, as the swimmers took their places on the blocks.
And just as fast, the cheering and screaming started again when the competitors dived into the pool.
In less than a minute, it was over.
Although Tao came in fifth overall, clocking 57.99sec, everyone clapped in appreciation.
Her roommate, swimmer Amanda Lim, thought that Tao had performed well even though she failed to clinch a medal.
Said the 15-year-old: "After all, it's not easy to even get the fifth place in the world."
Singapore Sports School principal Deborah Tan was equally positive, saying: "It was a spectacular race. She gave it her best shot, and we are all glad that she got to the finals.
"Her achievement is a huge inspiration to all the other athletes."
Dr Irwin Seet, the school's Director of Sports, was even more optimistic.
"In the next four years, we hope to get more medals, maybe even gold medals," he said.
bdjuhar@sph.com.sg
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