Singapore athletes to get more education and career support thanks to new SSC scheme

The Singapore Sports Council launched the Sports Excellence (Spex) Education Scheme and Sports Excellence Career Scheme on Tuesday, putting in place a formalised system of support for athletes to cope with the demands of competing and working or studying at the same time.

The Spex Career Scheme will help promote an athlete-friendly work environment, including the provision of flexi-time work arrangements, flexi-leave and flexi-place work arrangements. The Spex Education Scheme will help student-athletes leverage on their sporting achievements to gain admission into Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs).

Seven companies and six IHLs have come on board. They include Charles & Keith, Resorts World Sentosa, StarHub and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Management University and Republic Polytechnic.

Said Minister of State for Trade and Industry Teo Ser Luck, who is also chairman of the High Performance Sports Selection and Performance Sub-committee: "Athletes commit much of their prime to help bring glory to Singapore. There are sacrifices and dedication on the part of the athletes. While the expectation on them is high, we should assure them they are being taken care of now and in the future after their sports career."

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