Story by Zachary Foo and Les Tan/Red Sports. Photos by Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports
Mr Lim Teck Yin, CEO, SSC, addresses the media. (Photo 1 © Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports)
Jalan Besar Stadium, Monday, March 17, 2014 — Athletes with the potential to represent Singapore at the 2015 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games can look forward to financial support.
This was revealed by Mr Lim Teck Yin, Chief Executive Officer of the Singapore Sports Council (SSC).
Athletes who are working adults and who train full-time for nine to 12 months can get a grant of up to $2,500 per month.
Students who commit to a similar time span can receive up to $800 a month.
Mr Lim also revealed that 59 out of 64 athletes who received the Sports Excellence Scholarship (spexScholarship) have signed up. 12 out of 15 sports with Spex Scholars have started their training programmes.
The application window for the second batch of Spex Scholars will open on April 1 and close on May 2.
On the funding front, Mr Lim said that a total of $80.77 million has been allocated to support athletes and their National Sports Associations (NSAs) for the upcoming financial year.
SSC have also set in place new practices for NSAs to reduce their administrative burden. The agency will now disburse grants on a half-yearly basis as opposed to quarterly previously. NSA management committees can now have the power to reallocate funds between individual line items in block without needing SSC approval. Also, NSAs will only need to submit their financial statements to the Charities Unit.
Mr Lim also announced an Innovation fund of $25 million over five years. The fund aims to create breakthrough projects that will build long-term capabilities for NSAs and bring about sustainable benefits to the sports ecosystem.
The Super Sports Club, a recommendation of Vision 2030, will be known and promoted as ActiveSG.
ActiveSG is a national movement slated to launch on April 26, 2014. Its aim is to help athletes within the different zones come together to learn, train and compete in a wide range of sports. The aim is to show athletes that they can compete at any level, regardless of skill level. “This provides a pathway for late bloomers,” said Mr Lim, alluding to the fact that most athletes get their competitive fix only from representing school teams. This makes competitive sports accessible to a wider skill level, helping to develop both the youth and community pathways.
SSC will implement a master plan to give Singaporeans greater access to sporting facilities. For example, where possible, fencing will be removed to allow better access to sports facilities. Also, older swimming complexes will get a facelift. The refurbished complexes will have outdoor gyms by the swimming pool, aqua gyms, and alfresco lounge areas by the pool for parties.
From April 1, Mr Lim announced that SSC will be rebranded as Sport Singapore to reflect the new focus stemming from the Vision 2030 recommendations.
Working Adults: Grant for Loss of Wages (GLOW)
Up to $2,000/month (less than 9 months commitment)
Up to $2,500/month (9–12 months commitment)
Students: Training Assistance Grant (TAG) (enhanced)
Up to $600/month (less than 9 months commitment)
Up to $800/month (9–12 months commitment)
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