Despite string of successes, foreign talent issue dogs Lee Bee Wah

SINGAPORE — Under her six-year tenure as president of the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA), the sport reached new heights, such as winning Olympic medals for the women’s team in Beijing and London and racking up more than S$10 million in sponsorship dollars. But Ms Lee Bee Wah, who announced yesterday that she would not be standing for re-election next month, continues to be dogged by the issue of foreign talent in sports.

While the recently-concluded Commonwealth Games saw the national paddlers winning six out of seven gold medals available at Glasgow 2014, a number of Singaporean fans took to social media to complain about the number of foreign-born players in the 10-member team, which included two Singapore-born paddlers Clarence Chew and Isabelle Li.

The same issue has flared up several times in the past six years, particularly when the trio of Feng Tianwei, Li Jiawei and Wang Yuegu won a historic gold at the World Championships four years ago. Yesterday, Ms Lee pointed out that the STTA has been working hard to develop young, local talent. For example, the STTA introduced a STTA-PAP Community Foundation programme for kindergarten children. It has also set up zone training centres for paddlers aged five to 11 and a School-Within-A-School programme at the Singapore Sports School to groom future national players. “If you look at the pipeline that we put in place over the past six years, you can assess which NSA (national sports association) has done more and then, you can come to a conclusion,” said Ms Lee, who is also Nee Soon GRC Member of Parliament (MP).

“Whatever we do, we will not be able to please everyone,” she added.

For the Commonwealth Games women’s team final, where Singapore played against Malaysia, Ms Lee had suggested that the coach field Ms Isabelle Li for two singles matches.

“But (the coach) said Isabelle wasn’t ready. If we had fielded her and lost the gold medal, do you think no one will criticise us?” Ms Lee said.

The goal, she said, was to close the gap between the local and foreign-born players. “The German World Cup team’s youth programme started 20 years ago and if we continue with this pipeline, I am certain we will see the results in 20 years,” she added.

Her six-year term was not without controversy. She kicked it off with a firestorm after the Beijing Olympics in 2008 when she threatened to take action against coach Liu Guodong and team manager Antony Lee for an incident that saw Gao Ning playing his match without a coach on the sidelines. She was also involved in a disagreement with the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) ahead of the 2011 Jakarta SEA Games after the decision to field more local players saw national selectors choosing to omit the men’s and women’s teams from the initial contingent.

The STTA is expected to unveil candidates on Aug 25 for the election, which will take place at its biennial general meeting on Sept 6, with Sembawang GRC MP Ellen Lee and Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Alex Yam tipped to challenge for the posts of president and deputy president, respectively.

Known for her grit, Ms Lee was visibly emotional at yesterday’s press conference. She broke down in tears after fielding questions from the media. But the Nee Soon GRC MP said it was time to let go.

“I would like to spend more time in my constituency and prepare for the next general election. I will still be an adviser to STTA and will help if I am needed. My successors say they are ready,” she said.

Mr Oon Jin Teik, SportsHub chief operating officer and former chief executive officer of the Singapore Sports Council said Ms Lee brought “real glory to Singapore” with the system she built. “She localised the China-born paddlers to adapt to Singapore and its lifestyle, and pursued excellence in sports with integrity, passion and self-sacrifice.

“She cleaned up an NSA that had been filled with problems, replacing it with professionalism, respect and hard work. Singapore table tennis will miss the services of Lee Bee Wah.”