Fencers Amita Berthier and Kiria Tikanah want to be ‘big sisters’ to Singapore’s younger athletes
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Singapore fencers Kiria Tikanah Abdul Rahman (left) and Amita Berthier sharing a light moment during a media event on Nov 21.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Follow topic:
- Amita Berthier and Kiria Tikanah, experienced Olympians, aim to mentor young athletes, drawing from their own experiences.
- BT Development, their non-profit, launched clinics and workshops. They paused them to focus on the SEA Games, where they will mentor teammates.
- Fencing Singapore targets maintaining their 2023 SEA Games medal haul, but emphasises athlete well-being and resilience over just medals.
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SINGAPORE – National fencers Amita Berthier and Kiria Tikanah Abdul Rahman were once wide-eyed teenagers in their sport.
But since striking gold on their SEA Games debuts in 2017 and 2019 respectively, the pair have risen quickly and reached the grandest stage of sport not once, but twice.
Armed with the experience, the two-time Olympians will go into the Dec 9-20 SEA Games as Fencing Singapore’s most seasoned campaigners. And while the primary goal remains to reach the top of the podium, Berthier, 24, and Kiria, 25, are looking beyond just making an impact on the piste.
After becoming Singapore’s first fencers to qualify for the Olympics in 2021, they want to be “big sisters” to the next generation of athletes here.
In April, the pair teamed up to launch a non-profit initiative aimed at providing mentorship to young athletes. It is called BT Development, taking an initial from each fencer’s name.
They have since conducted an online sharing session, a fencing clinic in June that attracted about 50 participants and a mentorship workshop for young people alongside fellow Olympians, sailor Ryan Lo and kayaker Stephenie Chen.
Speaking at a media event held at the High Performance Sport Institute (HPSI) gym on Nov 21, Kiria, who has three golds, two silvers and one bronze from her three SEA Games appearances, said: “We wanted to do this because we felt like we’ve experienced so much.
Singapore’s SEA Games fencers Amita Berthier (right) and Kiria Tikanah at the High Performance Sport Institute gym on Nov 21.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
“We’ve been in the competitive scene for a very long time, competing in the SEA Games, Asian Games and the Olympics and we have so much to share and we wanted to create an outlet for us to give back to the younger generation.
“We want to be like a big sister to some of the younger generation because we felt like, when we were younger, we didn’t really have a good role model, or we didn’t know who to go to. We felt lost when we were younger and we didn’t want the younger generation to feel the same way.”
Berthier added that she had discussed with Kiria for a long time about introducing such an initiative, as “I wanted to start this because I wish that I had somebody like a mentor to look up to when I was younger”.
The pair said they have received good feedback from participants and parents, and have been pleased with being able to share their knowledge and experiences with young athletes from across different sports.
But for now, they have paused their workshops with full focus on the season ahead.
At the upcoming Games, they will still be able to play mentorship roles to their teammates. Out of the 23 fencers in Team Singapore’s contingent, 11 will be making their Games debut.
Kiria said: “I want to share my experience with them and make sure that they don’t go in as lost as I did when I was in their position all those years ago. So I just want to be there for them and guide them and make sure they’re not too overwhelmed... Being in a major Games is very different from going to a normal fencing competition overseas.”
In Thailand, Kiria will also be looking to better her result in the women’s individual epee from the 2023 Games in Cambodia, where she settled for a bronze, while Berthier will be making her return to the biennial event after missing the last two editions as she was pursuing a sociology degree at the University of Notre Dame in the United States.
Ahead of her return to a major Games where she has three gold medals – one team and two individual – Berthier said: “I am excited but also obviously, a little nervous. I am really looking forward to being there with my team.
“It’s very exciting because we have a couple of debutants, in my (foil) team we have a girl competing for the first time too. As a senior, I’m excited to take her on this journey and do my best to have her look up to something,” she added, referring to 17-year-old Stephanie Lee.
Berthier’s return will be a boost as Singapore’s fencers look to carry on the success from the 2023 edition in Cambodia.
(From left) The Singapore fencers competing in the SEA Games are Julius Tan, 17, Stephanie Lee, 17, Kiria Tikanah, 25, and Amita Berthier, 24.
ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Then, Singapore finished as the Games’ top fencing nation with seven gold, three silver and six bronze medals, a record haul at the regional event.
Fencing Singapore president David Chen told The Straits Times that the target is to “at least maintain” the numbers from the 2023 edition, but urged stakeholders to look beyond just the medals.
He said: “As a NSA (national sports association), medals are bread and butter, right? So those have to be delivered. But honestly, I think for the past few years, most of us have forgotten that our athletes are not medal machines.
“We would like to see our athletes come back feeling fulfilled, fence well on the piste, be mentally resilient and come back without injury. And for those who are making their debuts, we hope that this is a good, confident boost for them.”
Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information Tan Kiat How also attended the media event as Fencing Singapore’s patron and gave words of encouragement to the national fencers.
