Swimming: SSA makes new 'friends'

There will be a change in leadership at the Singapore Swimming Association (SSA) at their annual general meeting next Friday.

Current president Jeffrey Leow will step down after eight years and SSA secretary general Lee Kok Choy and Singapore Bowling Federation chief Jessie Phua will vie to replace him at the helm of one of the top national sports associations (NSA) in the country.

The new executive committee of the SSA will be boosted by fresh sponsorship deals worth $800,000.

Comprising cash and value-in-kind, TYR, Yakult Singapore and Volkswagen Group Singapore confirmed their partnership with SSA at the Volkswagen Showroom at Alexandra Road yesterday.

The respective deals will kick off at the first event to be held at the Singapore Sports Hub's OCBC Aquatic Centre from June 14 to 24 - the TYR 2nd South-east Asian (SEA) Swimming Championships 2014 presented by Yakult.

Swimwear giants TYR will be visibly prominent during the regional meet, while Yakult Singapore senior manager Nakato Yasuhide said around 10,000 bottles of the probiotic product will be distributed to athletes and officials for the duration of the event.

Volkswagen Group Singapore general manager James Page revealed that 13 of their vehicles will be made available for the transportation of equipment and personnel during the championships, while the SSA will also be able to a Volkswagen Jetta for the rest of 2014

RELATIONSHIPS

Said SSA secretary-general Lee: "This is the culmination of years of building relationships, all for the development of swimming and sports in Singapore.

"We are also privileged to be the first NSA to benefit from the Sports Hub and to have secured the excellent support of our key sponsors to partner in our journey.

"It must be a situation of mutual benefit where we must create value for our sponsors and give recognition for their contributions."

The SEA Swimming Championships, a biennial event, will feature over 200 athletes from the region across four disciplines - swimming, water polo, diving and synchronised swimming.

It will serve as an ideal platform for swimmers and officials to familiarise themselves with the new venue, which will host the aquatic events at next year's SEA Games in June.

Said Lee: "After we held the first edition in 2012, this event should have been rotated among the South-east Asian countries. But as we are hosting the SEA Games next year, we asked to host it again.

"This is like a dry run for the SEA Games next year as the schedule is more or less the same, so it gives us the opportunity to test out our set up.

"As this is only the second edition of the event, there are not many precedents for us to set a medal tally for our athletes.

"But I'm sure they will do their best. For the swimmers, this is also a qualifying event for the Asian Games, so I'm sure that's motivation enough."

Lee declined to comment on the upcoming elections, saying he would only do so after today's nomination deadline.

Smaller field, but quality remains

The fastest swimmers in the region will be here for the TYR 2nd South-east Asian (SEA) Swimming Championships 2014 presented by Yakult.

While the number of athletes confirmed for the biennial event has dropped from the projected 262 to around 200 - high cost of accommodation and other expenses restricted number of overseas swimmers - there will not be a lack of quality or exciting showdowns to create a splash at the new OCBC Aquatic Centre from June 14 to 24.

The three swimmers who finished on the podium in the men's 50m freestyle and 100m free at last year's SEA Games will reunite at the pool at the Singapore Sports Hub, with Indonesia's Triady Fauzi Sidiq, the gold medallist in both events, vying to continue his dominance.

Singapore's Danny Yeo (above), who finished third in the 100 free behind Triady and Vietnam's Hoang Quy Phuoc, is looking forward to racing against them again.

GOOD TIME

The 24-year-old national record holder in the 100m and 400m freestyle said: "As I have already qualified for the Asian Games, I won't be peaking for this meet. But as part of my preparations for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games, I'm still looking forward to a good time against the fastest swimmers in this region.

"The field is smaller than the last edition in 2012 but there are still a lot of SEA Games winners and medallists, so it will definitely be competitive."

In the women's field, Thailand's Natthanan Junkrajang, who won the 100m and 200m freestyle event at last year's SEA Games, will look to become the fastest swimmer in the region by beating reigning SEA Games champion, Singapore's Amanda Lim, in the 50 free.

Other notable names include Indonesian backstroke specialists I Gede Siman Sudartawa and Ricky Anggawijaya, Thailand's breaststroke specialists Ketin Nuttapong and Radomyos Matijur, and Vietnam's backstroke queen Nguyen Thi Anh Vien.

The championships will serve as a qualifying event for Singapore's swimmers for this year's Asian Games, which will be held in Incheon, South Korea, from Sept 19 to Oct 4.

davidlee@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on June 06, 2014.
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