Story by REDintern Alyssa Almas. Photos by Iman Hashim/Red Sports and REDintern Julianna Jothi.
Xavier Tan (#164) of ACS(I) celebrates after clinching the C Division boys’ 200m gold in 24.03s. (Photo 1 © Iman Hashim/Red Sports)
Choa Chu Kang Stadium, Monday, March 25, 2019 — Having missed out on last year’s National Schools Track and Field Championships due to injury, Xavier Tan of Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) was determined to claim his long awaited gold medal.
The Secondary 2 school student did not disappoint, clinching the C Division boys’ 200 metres gold with a time of 24.03 seconds.
“Last year during the SPH Relays, I got injured during the 4x200m relay,” shared Xavier. “I couldn’t train much, and I had to go for a lot of physiotherapy. As a result, I did not start any of my races last year.”
Speaking about his race performance, Xavier said: “I felt that I did not start off very well, as I felt that the blocks were really slippery. As such, I did not feel so good at the beginning. However, I just listened to my coach’s advice to stay loose and go hard.”
Isaac Koh of Raffles Institution stopped the clock slightly more than half a second after Xavier, finishing with the silver in 24.59s. Augustus Tay of Catholic High School took the bronze medal with a timing of 24.64s.
Xavier sheepishly added: “I honestly did not expect my results today. Having qualified third in the heats, I wasn’t confident of my performance.”
When asked if he was looking forward to moving up to the B Division the following year, Xavier expressed his excitement in being able to compete against his fellow ACSian, Mark Lee, who finished second in this year’s B boys race.
“I’m actually looking forward to next year — I’ll be competing against my friend Mark, and I’m definitely looking forward to the competition next year,” Xavier shared with a smile.
Xavier also had nothing but praise for his fellow competitors, saying: “They were all very good, and very friendly as well. Before the race, they tried to calm everyone down, so that was very good and nice of them.”
“I would like to thank my coaches especially, as well as my physiotherapist, and not forgetting my friends as they cheered me on today,” he added.
With a win under his belt, Xavier looks to repeat the same feat in the 100m final, as well as representing ACS(I) in the relay finals to be held at the Sports Hub.
C Division Boys’ 200m Final – Results
1st Xavier Tan Tze How (Anglo Chinese School (Independent), #164) — 24.03 seconds
2nd Isaac Koh Wei Jie (Raffles Institution, #224) — 24.59
3rd Augustus Gerald Tay (Catholic High School, #29) — 24.64
4th Zach Chia Chin See (Singapore Sports School, #113) — 24.69
5th Rayan Bagheri Aghdam (Anglo Chinese School (Independent), #156) — 24.83
6th Mohamad Afzal Bin Mohamad Zin (Singapore Sports School, #107) — 24.85
7th Elroy Quek Zhi Yuan (St. Joseph’s Institution, #259) — 24.93
8th Chong Jun Xiang Kyan (Singapore Sports School, #99) — 25.17
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