Passion reignited at Canoe Polo Championships

CANOE POLO

9th National Canoe Polo Championships 2007
Sunday, 9 September 2007

Story contributed by Red Sports reader, Gloria Lee. Pictures contributed by Ong Kheng Boon and Sit Weng San.

The Singapore Canoe Polo community came together over three action-packed weekends to make a success of the 9th National Canoe Polo Championships 2007.

Opponents jostle for the ball during the championship. © Ong Kheng Boon

The 9th National Canoe Polo Championships saw a deviation from previous years. It was jointly organized by the captains of all participating organizations a first in the history of Singapore Canoe Polo. To add another element of interest to the competition, ladies and mixed teams were allowed to join the Men's Open category this year with the understanding that they must recognize and bear the associated risks.

In yet another unprecedented move, all participating teams were seeded. The Men's Opens category was also further split into two divisions. This adoption of an established international playing format upped the excitement level another notch.

A player gets ready to shoot. © Ong Kheng Boon

This year, 36 teams participated across four categories - Men's IVP, Ladies IVP, Men's Open and Ladies Open.

Despite the weather alternating between scorching heat and torrential sheets of rain, the athletes were all fired up. As each game kicked off, the nervous tension of the athletes fell away to reveal practiced skill and seamless teamwork, eliciting thunderous ovation from the enthralled audience.

A player digs out the ball from the water while an opponent charges in. © Ong Kheng Boon

Adrenaline was revved up into high gear at the culmination of 50 hours of action-packed matches. During the prize presentation ceremony, each announcement was accompanied by tears of joy and relief that all the hard work had paid off.

Our Guest-of-Honor Mdm. Cynthia Phua, MP of Aljunied GRC, presented the medals to the Institute-Varsity-Polytechnic (IVP) category winners, while VIP Colonel Jordan Woo, General Manager of the Singapore Discovery Center, presented the medals to the winners in the Open category.

Team NUS – 2nd runner-up in the Ladies IVP category. © Sit Weng San

In the IVP category, teams Singapore Polytechnic and Nanyang Technological University emerged champions in the Men's and Ladies categories respectively. Teams Rookies and Red Tide 2 clinched the gold in the Men's Open Division A and Division B respectively, while the Ladies Open title was claimed by team Red Tide.

Team SP – Champions of the IVP Men’s category. © Sit Weng San

While the podium finishers must be congratulated for their sterling performance, it should also be noted that winning isn't everything, but striving to win is. In the world of sport today, winning should be redefined in terms of effort rather than outcome, so as to make sports more humane, meaningful, satisfying and enjoyable.

Team Red Tide 2 – Champions in the Mens Open ‘B’ Division category. © Sit Weng San

And that is why the Ladies National Squad, who gamely took up the challenge of participating in the Men's Open category as team Ocube, deserves special mention. Fighting well in all their matches, they eventually garnered a respectable sixth placing in the Men's Open Division B category, and the respect of all present.

French educator Pierre de Coubertin sums it up best when he said, "The important thing in sports is not winning but taking part. The essential thing in life is not conquering but fighting well."

The ladies’ national team, known as ocube, competed with the men. © Sit Weng San

Team Red Tide – Champions of the Ladies Open category. © Sit Weng San

OVERALL RESULTS

IVP (MENS)
1st – SP
2nd – NP
3rd – NUS
4th – TP
5th – NTU

IVP (LADIES)
1st – NTU
2nd – NP
3rd – NUS
4th – TP
5th – SP

MENS OPENS (DIVISION A)
1st – Rookies
2nd – Red Tide 1
3rd – SP A
4th – Rowdy Boyz
5th – SP B
6th – NUS 1
7th – TP Kakis
8th – SP C

MENS OPENS (DIVISION B)
1st – Red Tide 2
2nd – NP 2
3rd – NTU 1
4th – NUS 2
5th – TP Freshies
6th – Ocube
7th – NP 3
8th – NTU 2

LADIES OPENS
1st – Red Tide
2nd – NP 2
3rd – NTU
4th – TP Munchies
5th – Monsters
6th – SP A
7th – SP B
8th – NUS
9th – Devlin 1
10th – Devlin 2

Editor’s note: If you know the names of the players and their teams, you can leave them in the comments section and I’ll update the captions. Thanks.