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Minister urges more support for Team Singapore

SINGAPORE — With the South-east Asian (SEA) Games making a return to Singapore this June after a 22-year hiatus, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong has urged Singaporeans to support the Republic’s athletes, even as ticket sales for the Games are progressing well.

SINGAPORE — With the South-east Asian (SEA) Games making a return to Singapore this June after a 22-year hiatus, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Lawrence Wong has urged Singaporeans to support the Republic’s athletes, even as ticket sales for the Games are progressing well.

An estimated 700 athletes are expected to represent Singapore at the June 5 to 16 SEA Games, and about 100 para-athletes at the 2015 ASEAN Para Games in December.

“It is the first time in 22 years that we are hosting the SEA Games, and the only time it will be held the same time as the 50th birthday of Singapore, so it is truly a once in a lifetime chance,” said Mr Wong at the Committee of Supply Debate for the MCCY in Parliament today (March 12).

To get more to turn up to watch the various events at the SEA Games, the organisers have also reached out to friends and family members of national athletes by offering discounted tickets through the national sports associations (NSAs).

Mr Wong also called on employers in the public and private sectors to grant their staff time-off from work to catch the Games at the various venues.

The SEA Games are also expected to leave an important legacy for Singapore as the Republic looks to build on the culture of sports here. Mr Wong said today that programmes and initiatives would be stepped up under ActiveSG, the national movement to get more people to play sports.

ActiveSG’s partnership with schools will see them ramping up its School Holiday Sports Programme to expose more students to sports like archery, floorball and ultimate Frisbee.

They will also work with some schools to give students more opportunities to play sports, complement school sports offerings, and provide coaching expertise and programming assistance to schools.

Another legacy of the Games is the high performance sports system for national athletes, with the spexScholarship scheme providing financial assistance and programme support to athletes with the potential to excel at major Games and World Championships.

Mr Wong also said a review of the Singapore Sports School will be conducted, which may see the institution offering predominantly six plus years through-train programmes within the school, while strengthening their relationships with institutes of higher learning, local and overseas universities in a bid to extend the development pathway for student-athletes.

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