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SAILORS Toh Liying and Deborah Ong are surprise inclusions in Singapore's Olympic-bound contingent. This, despite the fact that the women's 470 pair were not included in the list of 23 athletes when the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) announced the contingent for Beijing yesterday. But late last night, SingaporeSailing learnt that the two sailors have been granted berths at the Games. Their qualification results from the lack of women competing in this class. Toh and Ong are the highest ranked non-qualifiers and were one of three pairs that have been included to meet the female quota. SingaporeSailing president Low Teo Ping, who is also the International Sailing Federation (Isaf) vice-president, explained: 'Isaf is trying to increase female participation in this event. 'This gives SingaporeSailing an opportunity to get a bonus at the Olympics.' The SNOC is awaiting a formal confirmation from Isaf. Swimmers Russell Ong (50metres free), Nicholas Tan (100m fly) and Marcus Cheah (400m free), will also be hoping to add their names to the list. They will be making their final attempt to qualify for the Games at the Telstra Grand Prix 2 in Sydney next week. Another possible change in Singapore's Olympic line-up lies in athletics. Although Zhang Guirong has qualified for the shot put and was granted SNOC endorsement, national 100m sprinter Amanda Choo is on standby as a wild-card entry. The Singapore Athletic Association is using a series of competitions, which will end next week, to gauge if Zhang is ready for the Games. Chef de mission Tan Eng Liang will lead Singapore's largest contingent since the 52-strong team that went to the 1956 Melbourne Games - but that was when Singapore was still under Malaya. The Beijing-bound contingent also boasts the most number of qualifiers. Of the 23, sprinter Calvin Kang, 17, is the only athlete who is going on a wild card. Calvin, who will compete in the 100m, said: 'It feels good that the nomination has finally been confirmed. This is really a bonus for me.' Singapore will feature in six disciplines - athletics, badminton, sailing, shooting, swimming and table tennis. But most of the medal hopes will rest on the shoulders of the women's table tennis team, who are second seeds in the inaugural team event at the Games. SNOC secretary-general Chris Chan felt that the team are in good shape to win a medal. He said: 'For table tennis, the medal is ours to lose. 'The seedings favour us. If we play to form, we stand a good chance.' World rankings also suggest that a medal in the women's singles is within reach. Paddlers Li Jiawei, Wang Yuegu and Feng Tianwei are ranked world No 6, 7 and 9 respectively. Chan said: 'A medal from the individual event is not far-fetched.' |
