Asean Para Games winners reap S$19,000 in cash rewards for gold medal performances

SINGAPORE – Wheeling into Bukit Jalil’s National Aquatic Centre last month, para swimmer Theresa Goh – who has congenital spina bifida and uses a wheelchair – felt the familiar flutter of butterflies in her stomach as she prepared for her first race at the Asean Para Games (APG).

It may have been her ninth outing at the APG, but the veteran swimmer admitted that she still gets nervous before each race.

“It’s a good thing, because that means I still care,” said the 30-year-old, who won her 30th APG gold in the women’s 100m breaststroke SB4.

“If I come to the point where I don’t care, it’s time to leave the sport. All the Games feel different… but there’s always excitement with each Games. Being the only one to compete in nine Games feels satisfying as no one has been at it so long.”

Goh added with a laugh: “My coach Uncle (Ang Peng) Siong even joked that I need to win 50 gold medals before I can retire!”

Goh, along with seven of her teammates from the 2017 APG, were rewarded for their gold medal efforts at the 9th APG Athletes Achievement Awards (AAA) ceremony at Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre on Wednesday night (Oct 25). The eight gold medallists received a total of S$19,000, which was sponsored by Tote Board and NTUC FairPrice Foundation, for their haul of nine gold medals at the Kuala Lumpur Games. Swimmer Toh Wei Soong was the top earner for the APG, banking a total of S$4,000 for his two gold medals in the men’s 50m and 100m freestyle S7.

While cash awards are only handed out for gold medals, Team Singapore’s para athletes had returned from Malaysia with a best-ever away medal haul – a total of nine gold, 17 silver, and 24 bronze medals.

Under the AAA, gold medallists are awarded S$2,000 for each individual medal, and S$3,000 for each team medal. It is mandatory for recipients to contribute 20 per cent of their winnings to the Singapore Disability Sports Council (SDSC) for training and development support.

Among the gold medallists present at the ceremony was table tennis player Jason Chee, who won gold in the men’s singles Class 2 despite losing his right eye to a rare cancer in May.

Chee, who lost both his legs, left arm and three fingers on his right hand after a naval ship accident in 2012, had to adjust his playing style after the surgery to remove his eye.

Despite the many challenges, Chee was determined to compete at his second APG.

“Losing one eye and my limbs is nothing much to me… I got back to playing table tennis and I was very happy,” he said.

“Winning a gold medal at the APG in Kuala Lumpur, I was extremely delighted, and the most important thing was to wear the Singapore jersey and represent the country. I didn’t expect to win gold, I just went there and played my best table tennis.”

Ms Grace Fu, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth paid tribute to Chee and his teammates at the ceremony.

“I was there to join some of you in Kuala Lumpur…the journey wasn’t easy, but to see you flying the Singapore flag high really brought chills to my spine,” said Ms Fu. “I was very moved to see all of you, whether veteran or debutant, doing your best there.”

The flag presentation ceremony for the Asian Youth Para Games (AYPG) – which will be held in Dubai from Dec 10 to 13 – was also held at the event on Wednesday night.

A record number of 31 athletes across six sports will compete at the AYPG, and the contingent will be led by chef de mission (CDM) Yip Pin Xiu. This is the first time that Yip, a three-time Paralympics gold medallist, will be taking on the CDM role, and she told TODAY: “I’m very excited because it’s my first time. My role will be to encourage the athletes and I would like to inspire them, and show them discipline, and what being a proper athlete is like.”

Para swimmer Danielle Moi, who won APG gold in the women’s 200m freestyle S14, will be making her debut at the AYPG in Dubai.

The 18-year-old, who studies at Metta School, a special education school for students with mild intellectual disability and/or mild autism, is looking forward to the competition.

“I hope to improve on my timings and get into the finals of my events (200m individual medley, 200m free, 100m butterfly), and I hope I can get a medal in the 100m fly,” she said.

Moi, who admires veteran swimmer Yip and Goh, added: “I look up to them because they managed to overcome their fear, and even though they are in wheelchairs, they have never given up. I feel excited that Pin Xiu will be there to lead the team, I think I can learn from her, and I hope it will be an eye opener.”