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Invest in sporting talent early

It was only in recent years that Joseph Schooling received state and corporate assistance, so if we had, for instance, pumped in resources from the 2008 Beijing Olympics onwards, our performance at the 2012 London Olympics would have been better ("A seven-year struggle to Olympic glory"; last Sunday, and "Success sweeter if athletes are backed from the start"; last Tuesday).

Editor-at-large Han Fook Kwang was right when he said success in sports is an organised effort supported by the state and its people ("A powerful statement for the younger generation"; last Sunday).

There should be more state and corporate sponsorship if we want to generate more world-beaters.

In swimming, we already have Schooling and Quah Zheng Wen, and I am sure we can train three more in the next four years before the Tokyo Olympics. With table tennis, we need to renew the existing team for a gold assault.

Having an Olympic "investment portfolio", similar to Temasek Holdings investing in its portfolio, may not be a bad idea.

We can celebrate more successes if we focus on our strengths and inherent advantages.

Hua Tye Swee

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on August 21, 2016, with the headline Invest in sporting talent early. Subscribe