Youth Olympic Swimming: Singapore swimmers make three semis and one final

Story by Koh Yizhe/Red Sports. Photos by Ng Cheng Cong/Red Sports

Singapore Sports School, Thursday, August 19, 2010 — Singapore had a slow start to the Youth Olympic Games swimming competition, but they are riding a good wave on the penultimate day with three swimmers and the women’s 4×100 freestyle relay team qualifying for the evening semi-finals and final.

Rainer Ng won Singapore’s first silver medal of the Games last night in the 50m Backstroke to set the standard for other Singaporeans. At the end of the morning session today, they did not disappoint.

Asian Youth Games and South East Asian Games gold medalist Amanda Lim put the smiles on the faces of Singapore’s supporters when she finished third in the last heat of the 50m Freestyle. Her time of 26.61, in this her pet event, allowed her to finish eight out of a field of 62 finishers to qualify for the semi-finals. Amanda, who is the national record holder in this event, was 0.87 behind the top qualifier, Anna Santamans.

She returned to the pool and joined Adeline Winata, Chriselle Koh and Cheryl Lim in the 4x100m freestyle women’s relay as the first swimmer. She swam her leg in 59.50, way off her personal best of 56.16. However, Singapore eventually scraped through to the evening final with a time of 4.02.12. They finished fourth in their heat and eighth overall, just 0.17 seconds ahead of the ninth-placed South Africans.

Although an individual medley specialist, Pang Sheng Jun also did Singapore proud as he qualified for the semi-final of the men’s 50m Breaststroke. It was his first time swimming in this event at a major tournament and he finished third in his heat and 10th overall in a field of 19 competitors with a time of 30.36.

“Overall, my race was good,” described Sheng Jun directly after his race. “I’m not really a sprinter and this is my first time in a 50-metre race. I managed to beat my personal best of 30.60, so I don’t have any regrets.In the YOG, they don’t have the 400 IM so I had to learn how to do sprints. My expectations were just to do personal best and make it to the semi-final and I think I got through.”

Freestyle specialist Clement Lim did a personal best of 51.40 seconds in the men’s 100m Freestyle race to finish second in his heat and to qualify for the semi-finals in seventh place in a field of 56 swimmers. He was 0.55 seconds faster than his previous personal best of 51.95.

“I’m feeling pretty good,” said Clement Lim after this race. “I did quite a decent timing and I am quite satisfied with my race. I did a sub-52 previously and my expectations in this race were to just to get a better timing and make it into the semi-finals.”

“Throughout the tournament I am aiming to break the 100 m freestyle national record and I’ll be gunning for that in the semis,” continued Clement.

Singapore’s only representative not to qualify for the evening session was Arren Quek. Swimming in the same event as Clement, the Anglo-Chinese Junior College student was unable to replicate his compatriot’s performance and finished with a time of 52.69 which placed him seventh in his heat and 28th overall.

Arren swam four races at the Youth Olympic Games and he could not beat his personal best of 52.37 or achieve his goal of a sub-52 timing.

“Quite disappointed,” sighed Arren when asked how he felt. “I thought I could do well in this race. I was hoping to get a sub-52 time in the tournament but I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t beat my personal best of 52.37 as well! I came close, but it was so hard!

With this being his last race, he felt that he has learned a lot from this. He said: “I’ll just do better next time and learn from my mistakes. Today I was swimming against big guys and so I got quite nervous. I guess I just got to learn from my experience. I am happy yet upset about my YOG. I am honoured to represent Singapore such a big and major event, but I am upset that I didn’t do Singapore proud.”

For Singapore fixtures and results, go to our 2010 YOG fixtures page

For Singapore fixtures and results, go to our 2010 YOG fixtures page