CALL him a speed junkie if you want. He doesn't care. All Amos Mok wants is to get faster and faster.

No slow coaches are tolerated here, mind you. The 40-year-old owner of local car workshop, Juzz For Cars, waits for no man.

Speed thrills him. It fills him up with the adrenaline needed to power his life.

Mok has been living his life in a jet-heeled blur since he started competitive swimming at the tender age of seven.

In his first swimming competition in school in 1976, Mok won the 50m freestyle event.

The gleam of that maiden trophy may have tarnished over the decades, but it remained his most memorable victory.

That triumph whetted his appetite for winning, and speed, and the desire for more propelled him into the national swimming team.

Mok went on to represent Singapore in the 1983 South-east Asia (SEA) Games where he came in fourth for both 100m and 200m backstroke events.

'I was disappointed that I didn't manage to win a medal,' recalled Mok, who was with the national team from 1979 to 1985.

'But I was just two seconds behind the bronze medallist. So even though I had clocked my personal best timing, I didn't win.'

That was the only time, however, that Mok represented Singapore in the SEA Games. But he had the chance to compete with some of the foreign national swimmers again in the SEA Interclub swimming meets.

This time, he reaped his fruits of labour - two silvers and four bronze medals.

He stopped competitive swimming after he joined the Navy to serve his National Service.

But the search for speed did not end.

Out of the waters, Mok started finding his speed fix on land.

He got into car racing and took part in carpark rallies which was then the only legal car racing outlet after the Singapore Grand Prix ended in 1973.

Mok won his first Kallang carpark race in 1998, in a Subaru WRX borrowed from his racing buddy, Avery Soh.

He won again the following year in a Honda Integra, also borrowed from Soh.

His love for fast cars prompted the two-time Kallang carpark race champion to start his own car workshop, specialising in BMWs and Minis, in 1999.

Today, Juzz For Cars - a partnership with his childhood friend, Billy Wan - has expanded into offering car tuning and paintworks services.

Occupying more than 600 square-metres of workshop space at Sin Ming Autocare building on Sin Ming Drive, Juzz For Cars boasts a $200,000 dynamometer room for tuning race cars.

But ironically, Mok can't mix business with pleasure. He decided to stop car racing as he wanted to focus on his business.

Optimistic

With the government showing their support for the motorsports industry and a racetrack in the making, he is optimistic about the growth and popularity of motorsports in Singapore.

'In previous years, when I went for tracking sessions in Sepang International Circuit, there were only 30 to 40 Singapore cars. Now I see groups of 70 to 90 cars driving up to Sepang to use the circuit,' said Mok, a fan of the BMW Sauber F1 team and Manchester United.

Today, he employs 15 staff members at Juzz For Cars and works five days a week.

Even though he no longer wakes up at 5am for training, he still swims regularly to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

He would be in the pool by 8am to swim (800m) before heading to work.

Besides swimming, Mok also runs twice a week (more than 10km) and cycles twice a week (80km) with a group of cycling enthusiasts who name their group Eat Cycle Eat.

Since he stopped competitive swimming and car racing, Mok turned to cycling to satisfy his craving for speed.

He would cycle from his Bedok home, down the Bedok Park Connector to East Coast Parkway and hit Changi Coastal Road where he would be speeding up and down the stretch of road for at least two loops.

Already owning four cars and four bicycles, Mok is eyeing his fifth bike - an Orbea Diem - a full carbon fibre Spanish-made hybrid bike.

'I love the feeling of winning and I need speed to win,' said Mok.

'Be it swimming, car racing, running or cycling, I always like to finish strong. I will sprint when I am near to the end.'

But for this sporty boss, there is no end to his desire to feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins.

All he wants is speed. The faster the better.

Mok talks sports

ON CYCLING

CYCLING is obviously gaining popularity among Singaporeans. With the recent OCBC Cycle Singapore and maybe a Tour of Singapore next year, it looks like it is going to overtake running.

We have more triathlon races today and that involves cycling, too. Young people will think that it is hip to cycle.'

ON MOTORSPORTS

EVERYBODY is waiting for the Changi Racetrack to be ready. I believe with the racetrack, we will see less speeding on the roads as there is an avenue for people with the need for speed to drive fast.

With a proper racetrack, we can have organised races and organised races are a lot safer.

ON FOOTBALL

LIVERPOOL are now Manchester United's biggest threat. But I still believe United will win the Premiership title. They just can't lose any more matches.

Wayne Rooney will be United's hero this season. He's an all-rounder and he has that aggression to win.

As for Cristiano Ronaldo, I don't think he will be able to repeat what he did last season. I believe he will leave United soon. At the very most, he will stay for one more season. He is a good player but I think he is over-rated this season.

If United don't sell him fast, they may not get a good price for him.