‘Schooling-mania’ hits fever pitch at victory parade

SINGAPORE — They braved the searing morning heat and came in their thousands. Some lined the streets, others patiently waited at one of the three scheduled pit stops. Many screamed his name, held up congratulatory placards and Singapore flags, and jostled their way towards him whenever he alighted from his bus.

That was the overwhelming reception that national swimmer Joseph Schooling got from Singaporeans from all walks of life yesterday during his victory parade on an open-top bus to celebrate his historic gold medal win at the Rio Olympics.

Through it all, the 21-year-old sported a wide smile, posed gamely for the cameras, waved to his fans and displayed his appreciation for their support by thanking them throughout the journey, which began at about 9.30am at Old Airport Road and ended at 1pm at Raffles City Shopping Centre.

Schooling, who was accompanied by his parents, Colin and May, also got off at the designated pit stops to meet his fans up close.

He first alighted at Marine Parade, where he was received by a raucous crowd of close to 2,000, who mobbed him as he made his way to his favourite chye tow kueh (carrot cake) stall at Marine Terrace Market. He only had time to take a mouthful from his plate of black chye tow kueh before moving on to address the crowd.

“Thank you for coming out there, this is crazy,” he said. “I love being a Marine Parade boy and I want to thank you so much for coming out here and waiting for so long (for me).”

At least another 1,000 people gathered at Schooling’s second pit stop, Singtel’s Comcentre plaza at Orchard. Addressing the crowd again, Schooling, who also showcased his new Olympic-rings tattoo on his right bicep, said: “This goes to show that it doesn’t matter where you are from and that even a small country (like Singapore) can do well on the world stage.

“The sports scene in Singapore has been improving in the last eight years (since the 2008 Beijing Olympics) and we are heading in the right direction.”

He also received a gift pack from Singtel that incorporated a Samsung Galaxy Note 7, a Gear IconX, a Bluetooth headset, a Samsung Gear Fit2 and a Samsung Gear 360.

Such was Schooling’s magnetic draw that he even indirectly caused two minor road accidents along the way. A car driver grazed the side of the bus while waving to Schooling while another driver collided into the back of a car at a traffic light junction.

At his final pit stop at Raffles City Shopping Centre, Schooling was greeted by a 1,500-strong crowd. Also present were Culture, Community and Youth Minister Grace Fu and Tan Chuan-Jin, the Minister for Social and Family Development, who is also the president of the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC).

Despite looking tired, Schooling still obliged his fans with autographs and wefies until about 2pm when he went off for a meal in private.

The victory parade concluded a whirlwind four days in Singapore for Schooling, who arrived here on Monday to great fanfare. He flew off to the United States early this morning to return to the University of Texas to resume his studies and training.

At the end of the parade, Schooling took to Instagram to thank his fans again. Posting a photo of himself atop the bus at Marine Parade giving a thumbs-up, he wrote: “What a day! The victory parade around Singapore was amazing. I can’t thank everyone enough that came out to show their support. Go Singapore!

“P.S. Sorry for causing 2 accidents haha i hope you guys are okay :)”