Quah siblings put swimming on hold; trio to skip Asian Games to pursue studies

SINGAPORE – Long-time key fixtures in the Singapore swimming team, the Quah siblings – Ting Wen, Zheng Wen and Jing Wen – will not feature at the Sept 19-Oct 4 Asian Games as they plan to put their sporting careers on hold to pursue postgraduate studies.

Between them, the trio have competed in many editions of the SEA, Asian and Commonwealth Games, as well as the Olympics, amassing an impressive total of 152 medals at the regional level across 20 years.

Ting Wen’s achievements stand out, in particular, after the oldest sibling claimed three golds, a silver and a bronze at the 2025 Bangkok SEA Games to surpass local legend Joscelin Yeo as the most decorated athlete at the regional Games with 65 medals.

This is the first time since 2006 that none of the Quahs will feature at the Asiad.

Zheng Wen met the A qualifying mark in the men’s 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke, and 100m butterfly, but will skip the event after enrolling in Duke-NUS Medical School at the start of August.

The 29-year-old, who has two relay bronzes from the 2018 Asiad, said he had always enjoyed the practical nature of science and was inspired by his father, who is a doctor.

He told The Straits Times: “I do draw inspiration from my dad, not just because he’s a doctor, but also because of the person that he is – that reliable figure that has always been in my life, and I would like to be that for my parents and my future family as well.”

In 2015, Zheng Wen gave up a place at the National University of Singapore’s Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine to study and train in the United States.

He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 2021 with a degree in molecular cell biology.

The three-time Olympian, who won four golds, three silvers and two bronzes at the SEA Games in December 2025, said: “To a certain degree, I wish I could have gone to the Asian Games because they happen once every four years.

“Even though I’ve had a very long career, I’ve only managed to go for two Asian Games, which is fewer than the number of Olympics I’ve been to. So, I do wish I could have gone, because at my best, I was competitive at the Asian level.

“I’ve done all that I can, and I’m pretty satisfied and quite happy, and I wish the contingent going to the Asian Games all the best.”

While Zheng Wen is still adapting to a busy life as a postgraduate medical student, he is happy to have more time for his loved ones.

He said: “I’m now able to choose what I want to do with my time, which is a very foreign concept to me because I’ve been swimming at a certain level for the past 15 years, so it’s hard to even remember what my life was like without swimming.

“Now, if I want to, I can go out with my family or my girlfriend on a weekday and have a nice time without worrying about having to wake up at 4.45am the next day. I can do activities that may be more active than I normally would partake in if I was still swimming, simply because it would make me tired and affect my training.”

Although Zheng Wen conceded that it would be difficult to qualify for the 2027 SEA Games and 2028 Olympics because he cannot train at the same level now, the 2029 SEA Games on home soil remains a possibility.

He said: “It would really depend on how Year 2 and Year 3 (of my studies) look like... It would be a pretty legendary thing to do, with the SEA Games back home after 14 years, as it was awesome to be part of the 2015 edition (which were also held in Singapore).

“But I also do hope that when that time comes and I try to qualify, I will not be able to because I hope that our swimming would have progressed to a certain point by then. I would want my juniors to be able to beat a 32-year-old who is in school.”

Younger sister Jing Wen, who qualified for the Asian Games 100m butterfly, also embarked on a postgraduate medicine journey at the University of Sydney at the start of 2026.

The 25-year-old, who has a relay bronze alongside Ting Wen from the 2018 Asiad, said: “It was a pretty hard decision to make, to step out of the Asian Games this year, because swimming has been my life for a really long time and it’s my passion.”

Following conversations with Singapore Aquatics, she had “unrealistic plans” to juggle swimming and studies but realised that medical school would be too demanding.

Hence, she made the decision to “prioritise this next step in my life, just for this year”.

Older sister Ting Wen, who met the Asian Games 50m freestyle and butterfly A qualifying times, has been pursuing a master’s degree in guidance and counselling at James Cook University, Singapore since September 2025.

She has also been working as a swim coach at the Overseas Family School since January.

The 34-year-old, who recently became the first active national athlete to be awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Scholarship for her postgraduate studies, noted that she “decided in the middle of the year to sit these Games out as I wanted to use this year to focus on school”.

Like Zheng Wen, the sisters have not ruled out a competitive return to the pool.

But for now, national swim coach Gary Tan will have to cope with the loss of three stalwarts who have a combined 94 gold, 41 silver and 17 bronze medals at the SEA Games, as well as the surprise retirement of 23-year-old breaststroke specialist Letitia Sim in May.

Wishing his former charges all the best in their pursuits, Tan said: “We always aim to improve on our previous showing, but medals are not our only measure of success.”

He noted that 19 out of the 29 Singapore swimmers at the upcoming Asiad will be making their debuts.

Tan added: “These Games will be a key milestone as Singapore swimming continues its journey of renewal.

“Our athletes have done well in building on the momentum from last year’s SEA Games; this has been shown through the encouraging performances they’ve put up during (other local meets).

“We’re now in the stage of fine-tuning race plans and techniques,” he disclosed.

“The Asian Games is a good opportunity for us to put all of this together and gauge where we currently stand among Asia’s best. I’m confident that our swimmers, led by co-head coaches Eugene Chia and Gustavo Schirru, can hold their own well.”

He added: “Our bigger focus remains on building a strong pool of swimmers not only for the 2026 Asian Games, but also for major international meets in the years to come.”