Kenneth Goh ready to get feet wet as new Singapore Aquatics president
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(From left) Singapore Aquatics executive committee members Christoper Ng, Jacquline Chow, Dominic Soh, Michael Foo, Yeo Kai Eng, Kenneth Goh, Leonard Yeo, Tay Chin Joo, Ow Yong Weng Leong and Wendy Lim.
ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
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SINGAPORE – Barely two weeks have passed since the Paris Olympics, but Singapore Aquatics president Kenneth Goh knows there is little time to waste, as the newly appointed chief revealed a new SwimSingapore national swimming framework aimed at raising overall standards.
The 46-year-old and his team were elected unopposed at the association’s annual general meeting on Aug 23. He takes over the helm from Mark Chay, who chose not to seek re-election after being diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia.
Goh told The Straits Times: “We are looking at establishing a national framework of standards.
“We have a talent development pipeline that starts with our clubs, and this SwimSingapore framework is a way to go further upstream, to establish these standards and milestones, and give parents confidence that they are backed by an official programme.
“The aspiration here is that our young swimmers will be equipped with basic, foundational skills to move on into more advanced programmes, in swimming, water polo, artistic swimming and diving.
“It’s really an attempt at improving the quality of our pipeline by going upstream to improve the standards and milestones.”
SwimSingapore will be fully launched in 2025 and, while more details will be shared in due course, it comprises several pillars in which participants will be certified, beginning with SwimStart for babies (six to 36 months old) and toddlers (three to four years old).
Water confidence will be taught to those aged three and above through SwimFun, while SwimSafer was rolled out earlier to teach children about swimming and water safety.
Under this framework, swimmers can develop their proficiency in the various strokes before exploring the different distances, as well as prepare for competitions.
They will be exposed to the other aquatic sports and there is also adaptive swimming for the elderly and persons with disabilities and special needs.
Goh added: “The vision is also to see every Singaporean becoming a proficient swimmer, and foster a nation where aquatic sports are accessible to all... contributing to a healthier and more active nation.”
The former national swimmer will serve a four-year term alongside six others from the previous executive committee – vice-presidents Ow Yong Weng Leong (partnerships), Christopher Ng (swimming), Dominic Soh (water polo), Wendy Lim (diving), secretary-general Yeo Kai Eng, and assistant secretary-general (water polo) Leonard Yeo.
The two new faces are assistant secretary-general (swimming) Jacquline Chow and treasurer Michael Foo, while vice-president Tay Chin Joo (artistic swimming) returns after an earlier stint.
Crediting Chay for “steering Singapore Aquatics to greater heights” over the past two years, Goh acknowledged his team have “big flippers to fill”.
Their first task in high performance is the 2025 World Aquatics Championships here
Goh, an academic director and associate professor at the Singapore Management University, said: “We are hoping for our swimmers to make the finals in a few events, and looking to be well-placed within Asia for water polo, artistic, swimming and diving.”
Reflecting on the recent Paris Olympics, where swimmer Gan Ching Hwee was the only one in the five-strong squad to log a personal best or national mark,
He said: “We are delighted by Ching Hwee’s performance, breaking two national records (women’s 800m and 1,500m freestyle). For the rest of the team, our swimmers have very high expectations of their performances, and they will naturally feel a little despondent about the results.
“That said, this is a young squad with an average age of 20. We have to look at the Olympics as a campaign in its entirety, and not just that singular performance in Paris.
“If you look at it from that vantage point, we had multiple national records broken on the road to Paris. We had one silver and 10 fourth-place finishes at last year’s Asian Games. And at the world championships, it was the first time our women’s 4x100m medley relay team qualified for the Olympics.”
Post-Olympics, Goh said that the team will be aiming to retain their dominance at the 2025 SEA Games, win more medals at the 2026 Asian Games and do better at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
He added: “If you look at the entirety of the campaign, they’ve done really well. But if we could save some of those peak performances at the Games itself, we would have seen better results at the Olympics.
“We have talked about how we strategise for qualification so that the athletes can peak at the event. That’s something we will be reviewing as well.”
To continue their engagement with the aquatics community, the team also plan to meet club owners and senior personnel in September “to talk about how we can collectively build an aquatics legacy together as one community”.
Aquatech Swimming head coach Marcus Cheah has backed the new team to succeed, saying: “I thought the AGM went well and the initiatives shared by the new exco were clear and concise.
“I believe they will be able to take Singapore aquatics to greater heights.”
