Story by REDintern Jessica Soo. Photos by REDintern Jared Khoo and Iman Hashim/Red Sports.
Emily Ong (#719) of Singapore Chinese Girls’ School retained her gold in the B Division Girls’ 400m final with a time of 1:00.51. (Photo 1 © REDintern Jared Khoo)
Choa Chu Kang Stadium, Friday, March 15, 2019 — Emily Ong of Singapore Chinese Girls’ School (SCGS) continued her unbeaten run in the 400m as she clinched her third consecutive title in the event at the 60th National Schools Track and Field Championships.
Right from the get-go, Emily took off at top speed across the track, unwilling to relinquish her hold on the B Division girls’ 400m gold medal. The clock was stopped at 1 minute and 0.51 seconds, to place her on the top of the podium, a sight similar to last year’s edition.
The result meant she completes her hat trick after winning the B Division gold last year in 1:01.05, as well as her victory in the C Division in 2017.
Emily was followed a few strides behind by Tong Yan Yee of Crescent Girls’ School who clocked a timing of 1:02.09, while Felicia Sng of Cedar Girls’ Secondary came in at 1:03.04 to finish third.
Emily expressed her delight in striking gold yet again but also admitted that she was aiming for a faster time.
“I feel quite grateful honestly,” she said. “However, I was aiming for a faster time and I didn’t meet that so I am a little disappointed.”
“Usually, I have a set plan that I follow throughout the race. But, to be honest, I was quite scared halfway through (the race) as everyone else was going pretty fast, and I was unsure if I could catch up.”
Nevertheless, Emily delivered a spectacular performance as she blitzed through the last stretch of red and topped her competitors.
“Nearing the end, you kind of just whack and give it your all,” she added. “Even if you start (getting tired), you continue to whack and give your very best.”
Even though track and field is an individual sport, Emily said she still felt a ‘team spirit’ among her competitors, and how it made the race all the more enjoyable.
She concluded: “I think running with this group of girls just makes it fun. There is a sense of camaraderie between all eight of us. Most of the bonding comes before the race as we are all really nervous and scared. And having that kind of team spirit, it’s really nice.”
B Division Girls’ 400m Final Results
1st Emily Ong Lee Ping (#719, Singapore Chinese Girls’ School) — 1:00.51
2nd Tong Yan Yee (#804, Crescent Girls’ School) — 1:02.09
3rd Felicia Sng Yan Ning (#879, Cedar Girls’ Secondary School) — 1:03.04
4th Wai Ying Xuan (#946, Dunman High School) — 1:03.19
5th Woo Ern Xi, Elsie (#1052, Nanyang Girls’ High School) — 1:03.24
6th Tvisha Rhea Sivakumar (#831, National Junior College) — 1:04.92
7th Phoebe Ang Ke Wei (#800, Crescent Girls’ School) — 1:05.11
8th Alexia Song Xiaomei (#1023, Nanyang Girls’ High School) — 1:05.46
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