Over $1 million awarded to Yip Pin Xiu and Jeralyn Tan for Paralympic Games medals

SINGAPORE –Singapore para-athletes Yip Pin Xiu and Jeralyn Tan were not the only big winners at the Athletes Achievement Awards (AAA) and Appreciation Ceremony on Oct 15, with their coaches also rewarded for their dedication in a first for disability sport.

The duo received $1.3 million from the award scheme for their achievements at the Paris Paralympics, with swimmer Yip banking in $1 million for her two gold medals in the 50m and 100m backstroke S2.

The Republic’s fourth and latest Paralympic medallist, boccia athlete Tan, who clinched a silver in Paris, received $300,000.

Yip and Tan’s respective coaches, Mick Massey and Yurnita Omar, will receive $50,000 and $15,000. 

Yip, who has Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, a condition which leads to a progressive weakening of the muscles, said: “Another award, but the more the merrier!

“All this money is also to help me to get the best kind of team in my next campaign. Of course, Sport Singapore does provide support in terms of sports science and medical services, but also sometimes we need a bit more.”

Games debutante Tan added: “This is the first time I’m receiving this award, it’s really great and I want to save it for my future.”

The AAA is given out by the Singapore National Paralympic Council (SNPC) to athletes who have won medals at the Asian Para Games, Commonwealth Games and Paralympic Games, as well as gold at the Asean Para Games.

The Tote Board and DBS Bank are the primary sponsors of the AAA.

Of the cash payouts given to the athletes, the SNPC will retain 15 per cent while the Singapore Disability Sports Council (SDSC) will get 5 per cent to help fund future training and development.

The SDSC will be allocating half of their sum to the athletes’ coaches. SDSC executive director Kelly Fan said: “Of this 5 per cent, we will be giving half of it to the coaches who have groomed and supported the athletes to the Games. So it’s a kind of acknowledgement for the coaches’ dedication over this journey.”

Tan’s coach and partner Yurnita said: “It’s a good change and it’s a bonus to us. I hope this new reward will motivate coaches in our country to work harder.

“So I hope to see more athletes going up there to the podium, and this is a good incentive for the coaches.”

Tan told the media that it is “good to give some to my coach, because she also helped me a lot and sacrificed a lot”. 

Yip added: “It’s nice that the SDSC has decided to do that. I think a lot of people don’t understand that when an athlete wins, it’s not only the athlete, but everybody supporting the athlete.

“Having a good coach is one of the key things that you need in order to have a good performance, and then the team also. So it’s really nice that the coach is getting recognised.”

At the Aug 28-Sept 8 Paralympics, Singapore was represented by 10 athletes. Besides Yip and Tan, the others are Toh Wei Soong and Sophie Soon (swimming), Diroy Noordin (athletics), Laurentia Tan, Gemma Foo and Hilary Su (equestrian), Nur Syahidah Alim (archery) and Daniel Chan (shooting).

Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Culture, Community and Youth, Eric Chua, congratulated the athletes, who all qualified on merit. Speaking during the ceremony at Novotel on Stevens, he added: “2024 has been a bumper year for para-sports in Singapore. Across the 10 editions of the Paralympics that Team Singapore has been a part of, this is the second-largest contingent, the same as Tokyo 2020.

“This year Team Singapore brought home our best medal haul in history, making it the most successful Paralympics ever for Singapore.”

With the Paris Games done and dusted, work will start anew for the fraternity, with the AAA on the priority list. 

In October 2021, the cash incentive for a Paralympic gold medal was doubled from $200,000 to $400,000 following a public debate over the disparity in cash rewards for Olympic and Paralympic medallists after Yip retained her two titles at the Tokyo Games.

It was then raised again in July 2022 from $400,000 to $500,000 – which is half the payout for an Olympic gold.

The enhancement of the AAA scheme was till the 2024 Paralympic Games and discussions are under way for future editions. 

SNPC president Teo-Koh Sock Miang said: “This is the first time that we are able to award this amount thanks to our two donors, Tote Board and DBS, and we’ve also awarded a silver medallist and a debutante, that is an amazing achievement.”

Correction note: This story has been updated for clarity.