Quartet may call time on swim career

SINGAPORE — As Singapore look to continue their dominance in swimming at next year’s SEA Games on home soil, the biennial meet could also be the swansong for several stalwarts of the Republic’s national swim team.

TODAY understands that multiple SEA Games gold medallists Russell Ong, Zach Ong, Quah Ting Wen and Mylene Ong are considering calling time on their national swimming careers after the June 5 to 16 SEA Games as they begin to plan for life and a career outside competitive swimming.

Though they do not enjoy the same level of success and profile as Asian Games champions Joseph Schooling and Tao Li, the quartet, who also hold several national records, have played a key role in maintaining Singapore’s position as the region’s top swimming team, having amassed a combined 37 medals from the previous three SEA Games.

Speaking on the sidelines of the second day of the 10th Yakult Singapore National Swimming Championships (Dec 16 to 21) at the OCBC Aquatic Centre yesterday, national assistant coach Gary Tan admitted that the quartet — who are among Singapore’s most experienced competitors — will be missed should they leave.

“These swimmers still have a lot to contribute and we will try our best to keep them on the team as long as we can, but it also depends on what they want in terms of their life ambitions,” said Tan.

“There is a pipeline of young swimmers coming up. With the new national training programme soon to be set up (with head coach Sergio Lopez), there are a lot more opportunities for growth in that sense to cover the spaces left by those who retire.”

Lopez, a bronze medallist at the 1988 Olympics and director and head coach at the Bolles School in Florida, will begin his appointment as national head coach on Jan 2 and aims to make Singapore one of the world’s top swimming nations within five years.

But the gap between Singapore and other South-east Asian teams is narrowing — Thailand had 19 medals fewer than the Republic at the 2011 SEA Games, but narrowed that to seven at last year’s edition in Myanmar.

Former national head coach Ang Peng Siong said national age group swimmers must be given more opportunities. “It is critical that we identify the next batch of swimmers (for the national team) aged 13 to 15, engage them more and create more training camps,” he said.

While Russell, Mylene, Zach and Quah are focused on helping Singapore top the swimming competition again at next year’s SEA Games, planning for a future outside competitive swimming is becoming a reality.

Russell, 25, had contemplated retirement after the last year’s SEA Games, but decided to give winning the elusive gold medal in the 50m freestyle another shot; he had missed out last year by 0.02 secs to Indonesian Triady Fauzi. Zach, 24, also contemplated retirement earlier this year, but was talked out of it by his coach Ang Peng Siong.

For Mylene, 23, competing at a high level is also starting to take its toll. “It is tough, and I am doing much less time in the pool now,” said Mylene, who competed at the 2012 London Olympics. “If next year gets too tough, I might have to drop swimming earlier than planned.”

Quah, who graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles this year, is also realistic that at 22, it is time to start planning for life outside competitive swimming. “I’m now focused on the SEA Games as I like to be committed in what I do, but also want to see what else is out there besides swimming,” she said.