Singapore Sports School award winners thrive beyond their comfort zones

SINGAPORE – A 1½-year sojourn in the Serbian city of Valjevo proved invaluable for Singapore water polo player Chow Yong Jun.

During the overseas training stint, which began in January 2024, the teenager trained with Valis Valjevo, a team that competes in the country’s top league.

Then just 14 years old, he learnt to live independently while training and competing among professionals at the highest level.

The experiences he gained there paid off in a significant 2025 for Yong Jun, who represented Singapore at several major international championships and made his SEA Games debut.

In recognition of his sporting and academic achievements, he was awarded the Moo Soon Chong Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year Award (Secondary) at the Singapore Sports School (SSP) Awards Night on Feb 11.

The ceremony was graced by guest of honour, Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth David Neo.

“It (getting the award) really shows how far I’ve come, how hard I worked throughout the last year,” said Yong Jun, who completed his Secondary 4 studies in 2025 and is pursuing a diploma in business studies programme jointly offered by Ngee Ann Polytechnic and SSP.

“It is not a sole effort – a lot of my friends, teachers, classmates, all helped me along the way.”

Reflecting on his time in Serbia, the 16-year-old said: “That helped me a lot. It boosted my confidence. As I was over there, I was training and competing at the highest level, playing in the top leagues and I believe that helped me.

“Living there alone while studying also helped me develop my discipline and responsibility. Over there, I learnt the ins and outs of a professional water polo player, such as taking 13-hour bus rides to other cities or countries, staying overnight, playing a game, then coming back.”

In 2025, he represented Singapore at several major international championships, including the Asian Aquatics Championships, the Asian Aquatics Under-20 Water Polo Championships and the World U-20 Championships.

The year culminated in him making his SEA Games debut in Thailand, where he was part of the team who

clinched gold for a 29th time, solidifying their status as regional kingpins

.

Yong Jun was among four athletes who received the Moo Soon Chong Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year Award – the highest accolade presented at the school’s annual ceremony to all-rounded student-athletes.

It honours the late Moo Soon Chong, the founding principal of SSP.

Table tennis player Loy Ming Ying was also named Moo Soon Chong Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year (Secondary), while fellow table tennis player Izaac Quek and fencer Juliet Heng received the award for the post-secondary level.

It was also an eye-opening year for Ming Ying, who was part of the team who clinched a joint-bronze medal at the 2025 Asian Table Tennis Team Championships.

En route to their podium finish, the team upset hosts India 3-2 in the quarter-finals to advance to the semi-finals, where they fell 3-0 to eventual silver medallists Japan.

She also made her maiden SEA Games appearance, securing a women’s team silver and a joint-bronze in the women’s doubles.

Ming Ying also excelled at the youth level. At the SEA Youth Championships, she clinched four medals, including the U-15 girls’ singles gold.

She also made her mark at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Youth Contender Cappadocia, winning gold in both the U-17 and U-19 girls’ events.

On how competing in more senior tournaments helped her, the 15-year-old said: “In the adult competitions, those people are more experienced and better than most of the youth players. I can learn a lot from the better players from playing with them.

“After playing more, I can control my emotions better during my matches. I’m less nervous now.”

The teenager will be taking a leave of absence from school in 2026 to fully focus on her table tennis career as she prepares for the Oct 31-Nov 13 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in Dakar, Senegal.

It was not an easy decision to make and Ming Ying, who was supposed to take her O levels in 2026, was initially reluctant to take a gap year as she was afraid she would not be able to catch up with her studies when she returned.

But eventually her parents and those around her convinced her to do it.

Looking ahead to the YOG, she said: “There are a lot of good players from my age group in every country, I just hope to play well and get top eight there.”

On Feb 11, the SSP also signed a memorandum of understanding with Temasek Polytechnic (TP) at the awards ceremony to expand academic pathways for student-athletes.

The school and TP will jointly offer five diploma programmes under the polytechnic’s School of Applied Science, giving student-athletes more options to pursue post-secondary education while continuing to train and compete at a high level.

SSP principal Ong Kim Soon said that the partnership, as well as those with Republic Polytechnic and Ngee Ann Polytechnic, will contribute towards making sport a viable career.

He added: “By shaping an athlete-friendly learning environment that understands the demands of high-performance student-athletes, we are better meeting the needs of the sports ecosystem to enable more student-athletes to thrive in their sporting careers and beyond.”