Ultimate frisbee soaring high in S’pore

SINGAPORE — It is a game that started here in the mid-1990s with a group of expatriate players throwing a frisbee on the Padang. Now, ultimate frisbee boasts a playing population of about 3,000 people, with 10 clubs currently registered here.

What began as a recreational game is about to get serious, with the Ultimate Players Association (Singapore) (UPAS) aiming to be recognised as a national sports association (NSA) by sports governing body, Sport Singapore (Sport SG).

UPAS met with Sport SG in 2014, before submitting an application in the same year. They had recently met with the Sport SG again for discussions.

According to UPAS president Ang Zi Wei, the sport’s popularity has flourished in recent years, particularly among teenagers and young adults aged between 16 and 26 — who form the majority of their players. The annual Singapore Ultimate Open has seen participation grow from about 100 people in its inaugural tournament in 1999, to 800 last year.

The association is hopeful that gaining NSA status will help open doors for its plans to grow the sport here, particularly at the school level.

“Part of our leadership plan is to lead the sport to a higher level, and this is something we’re looking at and I felt we could do more,” said Ang in an interview with TODAY. “The application is looking good as we are well-structured, and let’s hope we get there.”

Added UPAS secretary Angelina Dass: “This (NSA status) will open more doors when we are dealing with government agencies like the Ministry of Education and getting to schools, and give the students recognition. It’s not an official co-curricular activity at the moment.”

Tryout sessions and clinics in schools are also part of the association’s outreach plans, and it also wants to work with ActiveSG to introduce the sport to more people.

Corporate sponsorship is also on the radar, particularly with four national teams (men, women, mixed, masters) set to compete at the World Ultimate & Guts Championship in London in June.

National players currently have to fork out their own money for travel and accommodation expenses for overseas competitions.

More importantly, gaining NSA status will also give the sport a shot at SEA Games glory. UPAS is targeting for ultimate frisbee to feature at the 2017 SEA Games as an exhibition sport, before getting on the official sports programme in 2019.

The sport is currently played in four South-east Asian nations: Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

“The SEA Games is the missing piece in the athletes’ milestone,” said Ang, 26.

“Our athletes deserve to be out there as they are so passionate, and they are putting in as much effort and hard work as others. We are second in South-east Asia now, and we want to be the best out there (in the future).”

Responding to queries, Bob Gambardella, chief of Sport SG’s Singapore Sports Institute, said the organisation will continue to work with groups to develop their sports as part of its ongoing efforts to provide more sporting opportunities for everyone.

“Applying and granting NSA status is a far more detailed process,” he said. “In the last 12 months alone, there have been over 20 sport interest groups that have sought, but have not been granted, NSA status as they have not met the necessary criteria.

“UPAS has been in close talks with us and we have been providing advice towards their NSA status application. We will continue to engage them as we do with other sports stakeholders who can help fulfil the purpose of helping Singaporeans get active through sport.”

CLARIFICATION: In an earlier version of this article, we reported that UPAS kick-started the application process by registering with the Registry of Societies in 2014, and recently met SportsSG for discussions. UPAS has since clarified that they met with Sport SG in 2014, before submitting an application in the same year. They had recently met with the Sport SG again for discussions.