Award casts wider net on more sports

Athletes from road cycling, ice hockey, jiu-jitsu, softball and water polo in the high performance Under-18 category featured for the first time in this year's Singapore Olympic Foundation-Peter Lim Scholarship awards.

A total of 289 youth athletes from 32 sports will receive $825,000 this year, the SOF said yesterday.

Money for the four categories - primary ($1,000), secondary ($2,000), tertiary ($3,000) and high performance U-18 ($5,000) - is meant to cover school-and sports-related expenses.

Softballer Mohammad Huzaifah, 18, who won a historic gold medal with the men's softball team at the SEA Games last year, said: "The sport hasn't been popular for quite some time, but this shows that the sport is getting the attention of the public."

The scholarship will help the Ngee Ann Polytechnic student cover the cost of flights and accommodation for overseas training trips and competitions, which players co-pay for. One such trip to Japan last year cost him over $1,000.

Short track speed skater Xu Jing Feng, who won the 3,000m men's relay title at last year's SEA Games in the Philippines, said: "Last year, the funds helped defray my competition fees and equipment expenses which were necessary for my SEA Games preparations.

"This year, I'm planning to replace my skating boots which are coming apart after 4½ years, and I hope to use the scholarship funds to cover the replacement."

For national footballer Putri Nur Syaliza, an eight-time recipient, the scholarship has been a big help.

Her mother, a bus driver, is the sole breadwinner in her family of six as her father is unemployed because of health problems.

Putri, 17, said: "The scholarship has really helped me a lot over the years. It was very difficult for me when I needed the money to get good sports equipment."

The fund was started by Singaporean billionaire Lim in 2010 with a $10 million contribution. A total of 2,930 scholarships worth $8 million have been awarded to young athletes across 54 sports.

Past recipients include Olympic champion Joseph Schooling, who received the scholarship in 2012, while many others have gone on to represent the Republic at major competitions, including at the Olympics (13), Asian Games (77), Commonwealth Games (28) and SEA Games (146).

There will not be a ceremony this year to mark its 10th anniversary and the cash awards will be deposited directly into recipients' bank accounts. Their certificates will be sent after circuit breaker measures are lifted.

Last year, Lim pledged another $10 million from 2021 to 2030 for the scholarship and also committed a separate $20 million to start a new community project focused on helping children from less privileged backgrounds.

SOF chairman Ng Ser Miang, who is also an International Olympic Committee member, said: "Pursuing sports excellence is life-changing. It gives inspiration and hope.

"Over the past 10 years, Mr Lim's continued generosity has allowed many young Singapore athletes to pursue and excel in their sporting dreams.

"It stemmed from his simple wish that no young athlete be held back, or have unrealised potential because of financial difficulties."

Toh Boon Yi, chief of the Singapore Sports Institute (SSI), added: "We envisage that the SOF-Peter Lim Scholarship can continue to play a game-changing role as an integral part of our national high performance system."