|
|||||||||||
|
Singapore's sailors finished down the list at the Beijing Olympics. But did they perform up to expectations? Lim Say Heng finds out from the president of the Singapore Sailing Federation
GOOD, but not good enough. That was the assessment of our Olympic sailors by the Singapore Sailing Federation (SSF). While Singapore may have been the top sailing nation at the 2006 Asian Games, winning five golds in Busan, the Olympic Games was a whole new level for our sailors. The six-member team - consisting of Koh Seng Leong, Lo Man Yi, Xu Yuan Zhen, Terence Koh, Toh Liying and Deborah Ong - finished creditably in Qingdao despite facing erratic weather conditions and a very strong field of competitors. 'We must understand that training is very different from competition,' said SSF president Low Teo Ping. 'They were facing very experienced sailors who already have the mindset (of Olympic sailing), they have the experience and know what it is all about.' Most of the sailors who finished on the podium in Qingdao are in the late 20s to 30s, having spent even up to a decade honing their craft before tasting glory. In contrast, all but one of our sailors were making their Olympic debut earlier this month. Seng Leong first competed in the Olympics in Sydney 2000 with Tan Wearn Haw in the 470 Men category. Of the six, 18-year-old Ong is the youngest while Seng Leong is the 'veteran' at 25. Resources Also, sailors from countries such as Australia and the Great Britain team have more resources at hand, allowing them to go for lengthy training trips overseas. 'We spent a couple of weeks each time in Qingdao,' he said of the six training trips to China, made over a two-year period. 'But the top sailing nations spent months there instead.' Which was why Low was satisfied with the sailors' performances in Qingdao. 'I would give them between five and six out of 10 marks,' said SSF president Low Teo Ping, when asked to rate their performances. 'I thought the 470 Men pair held up very well against the rest of the field.' He was referring to Xu and Terence, who finished 22nd overall, out of a field of 29 nations. 'I would say that qualifying for the Olympics is a success in itself,' he added. 'This is the first time we have qualified on merit in four events.' Laser sailor Stanley Tan was the only Singaporean sailor who made the Athens Games four years ago on merit. He also made it to Sydney 2000 with the 470 pair Seng Leong and Tan, all via wildcard entries. With the Qingdao experience under their belts, SingaporeSailing officials and sailors can now plan ahead for London 2012, where they are gunning for medals. The federation is currently reviewing their High Performance Strategic Plan, which affects elite sailors such as Seng Leong. The revised plan will be finalised in October this year, and form the basis of their charge towards the next Olympics. 'We will be holding a post-mortem in a couple of weeks time with the sailors, so we'll see how it goes from there.'
|
