Sprinter Timothee Yap on fast track to stardom

SINGAPORE — Fresh off his debut at the Rio Olympic Games last month, national sprinter Timothee Yap has signed a two-year deal with local media company Noon Talk Media to give his budding athletics career an added boost.

Yap told TODAY that he had been on the lookout for an agency to represent him since June, and a chance encounter with the company’s founder and chief executive officer Dasmond Koh at last month’s Puma Night Run gave Yap the opportunity he needed. After discussing his career plans with Koh, Yap eventually signed on the dotted line last week.

Noon Talk’s two-year deal with Yap will see the company managing the athlete’s public appearances, promoting him via social media platforms, and securing sponsorships and endorsements to help in his training and competitions.

The 21-year-old sprinter is the first sportsman that the media company – which also manages artistes Xu Bin, Aloysius Pang and Kimberly Chia – has signed on.

A radio and TV veteran, Koh told TODAY that he is excited about “taking on a new area”.

“I’m hoping that whatever platforms we have will help make him more recognised, and with that exposure Singaporeans will support our sportsmen more,” he said.

“To me, I feel that this part is lacking here and we only know of them when they have some achievements. I hope that they can gain some recognition and with the support they can achieve their dreams.”

Yap, a law undergraduate from National University of Singapore, competed in the Olympics’ 100m event on a wildcard. He said he wants to help raise the profile of the sport here.

“Singapore is pretty passionate about sports, but they need the information to be brought to them,” he said.

“Other than Joseph Schooling, I feel that other sportsmen are not well known here among the public.”

Referring to Singapore Athletics’ recent woes, which included an eleventh-hour change in its selection criteria for the Olympic wildcard and a public squabble among its athletes, Yap added: “The general direction is for Noon Talk to promote me as Singapore’s homegrown sportsman. I want to bring a more positive image of athletics, garner more viewership for athletics events here, and bring it to the masses.”

While local sportsmen like swimmer Russell Ong, basketballer Chase Tan, and wushu exponent Vincent Ng have made the foray into local entertainment, Yap insisted he is not looking at a career in acting or hosting just yet.

The hurdler-turned-sprinter, who finished ninth in his Olympics 100m heat in 10.79sec, is aiming to meet the SEA Games qualifying time of 10.45sec in order to earn his ticket to Malaysia next year.

“I really want to qualify for the SEA Games. I don’t want to be distracted from my training and that’s the reason why I approached Noon Talk,” he said.

“I don’t know if I can act. I’m open to it but it’s on hold for now because of my studies and sports. What I want to convey to the public is that I’m still a sportsman and a student and I’m not in this for myself. I want to help raise the profile of athletics in Singapore.”