Singapore lion dance troupe retains title at Genting World championship
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Yiwei Athletic Association fought off competition to clinch the top two positions at the 15th Genting World Lion Dance Championship on July 27.
PHOTO: YIWEISG/INSTAGRAM
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SINGAPORE – A lion dance troupe from Singapore’s Yiwei Athletic Association defended its title at the 15th Genting World Lion Dance Championship on July 27.
Yiwei had triumphed in 2023 to break Malaysia’s 13-year stranglehold on the title at the competition, which is held biennially.
In this edition, Yiwei sent two teams of eight to compete in the battle of Chinese mythical creatures and again came out on top.
Its Team B was crowned the grand champion with a score of 9.78, and its Team A was first runner-up with a score of 9.66.
Mr Lee Kai Ming, 30, a coach at Yiwei, said: “Winning this championship means a lot to us because this is a world-recognised lion dance competition, and we are representing Singapore. SG60 is coming soon, and we’re happy that we can win this competition for Singapore.”
Organised and hosted by Resorts World Genting in Malaysia, the three-day tournament featured 40 competing teams hailing from places such as China, Hong Kong and Australia.
Mr Lee said the Yiwei teams began their preparations for the competition and planned their choreographies in April.
Team A’s performance was based on Guan Gong, an ancient military general who is now worshipped as the Chinese god of war; while Team B was based on Nezha, a Chinese deity often depicted as a child in iconography. The teams practised at a rented location in Defu Lane.
When contacted, the Singapore Wushu Dragon and Lion Dance Federation said it was proud of Yiwei’s performance, that “they have come a long way and achieved this through dedication, training and hard work”.
The federation’s vice-president, Mr Jackson Lam, said: “They continue to reinvent and challenge themselves, including incorporating the popular character Nezha in this year’s performance.
“I am very happy for them and hope we can continue to support the dragon and lion dance culture in Singapore.”
The teams from Yiwei started preparing for the championship in April and trained daily at a rented location in Defu Lane.
PHOTO: SINGAPORE YIWEI ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
In 2025, Resorts World Genting deepened the prize pool to celebrate its 60th anniversary, and Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke presented the winning teams with their trophies.
Yiwei’s champion Team B took home US$18,000 (S$23,000), while Team A won US$10,000.
In 2023, the champion received US$15,000, while the first and second runners-up received US$8,000 and US$5,000 respectively.
Celebrations, though, will come only later, said Mr Lee, as the group has turned its attention to preparing for upcoming competitions in Singapore and abroad, starting with the 29th Ngee Ann City National Lion Dance Championships from Sept 8 to 13.
