S’pore’s medal haul — the breakdown

INCHEON — If Singapore’s sport bigwigs were reluctant to give a medal prediction prior to the 17th Asian Games — and rightly so, considering the difficulty in gauging the quality of opposition that the athletes would face in Incheon — they will undoubtedly be proud, and somewhat relieved, that the nation’s athletes have managed to improve on the medal haul from the 2010 iteration of the Games in Guangzhou.

Returning home with 24 medals — five gold, six silver and 13 bronze — is an improvement on the 17 (4-7-6) from four years ago, with Lim Wei Wen’s bronze in the men’s individual epee a breakthrough for the sport in these quadrennial Games.

Looking at the medal haul, it is important to note that the share of non-Olympic sports in the medal total has shrunk, representing an improvement by Singapore’s athletes in Olympic-ratified events.

The Asian Games have become a springboard for the bigger stages of the world championships and the Olympics, and the continual progress for those Olympic sports must be recognised.

Medals from Joseph Schooling and Tao Li gave Singapore fans something to look forward to in the next two years, as these two classy athletes plot their way to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, at which they will be at their peak and ready to take on the best in the world and expect results.

Sailing’s ever-reliable contribution to the medal tally must now be seen in the context of how many of the sailors will go on to excel in Olympic class boats, the qualification process being convoluted as it is.

Similarly, the impressive Jasmine Ser proved herself to be a big Games athlete, following up her medals at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow with an Asian Games record (women’s individual 50m rifle 3 positions), although she did ultimately miss out on a medal.

After non-Olympic sport had contributed 46 per cent of Singapore’s medal tally in 2010 (six of 17), this time around, the share has gone down to 25 per cent (six of 24).

Team Singapore’s chef de mission Jessie Phua had the pleasing job of delivering a positive report card for the 223 athletes who competed across 20 sports in Incheon.

However, the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) vice-president also called for a shift in the thinking of our athletes, telling them they are completely within their rights to aim higher.

And while many in the sports fraternity spoke of using the 2014 Asiad to prepare for the 28th SEA Games, which will be hosted next June in Singapore, Phua finds it strange “that you go to a bigger Games to get the experience so that you can medal in a lower-level Games”.

“It boils down to mindset. We have athletes who don’t think they can match up to the powerhouses, who do not believe they can be one of the big boys,” she said.

“Don’t say, ‘I come for experience.’ That should be done under the national sports associations’ (NSA) budgets, not under the SNOC banner. You should be able to stand tall after you’ve competed to say, ‘I did not disappoint you, I am indeed in the top six in Asia’.”

And therein lies the challenge for Singapore’s NSAs: To alter the thinking of their respective athletes and look beyond the SEA Games, in effect setting their sights on bigger targets.

The goal of being champions in our own backyard may no longer be enough for a nation with higher aspirations, and a justified hunger for success.