Singapore Sailing Federation

Singapore Sailing Federation
SSF
IOC nation Singapore
National flag Singapore
Sport Sailing
Official website www.sailing.org.sg
HISTORY
Year of formation 1954
AFFILIATIONS
International federation International Sailing Federation (ISAF)
ISAF members page www.sailing.org/about-isaf/mna/singapore.php
ISAF member since 1960's
National Olympic Committee Singapore National Olympic Council
ELECTED
President  Benedict Tan (SIN)
SECRETARIAT
Chief Executive  Tan Wearn Haw (SIN)
FINANCE
Company status Charity Organisation

The Singapore Sailing Federation (Abbreviation: SSF; Chinese: 新加坡帆船协会), also known as SingaporeSailing, is the national sports association responsible for the management and organisation of the sport of sailing in Singapore. With affiliations to organisations such as the Singapore National Olympic Council and the International Sailing Federation (ISAF),[1] it has Ng Ser Miang as its patron, and is currently headed by Dr Benedict Tan. It is headquartered at the National Sailing Centre at East Coast Park.

History

Starting Out

In 1965, Singapore Yachting Association was founded, with Jack Snowden as its first president. He actively promoted the involvement of Singaporeans in sea sports. However, the history of Singaporeans sailing dates back all the way to 1956, when members of the Republic of Singapore Yacht Club, including Snowden, competed in the Melbourne Olympics.

The success of sailing prompted the government to reward the sailing fraternity by building the National Sailing Centre (NSC) at East Coast Park. NSC was slated to be established as a base for Singaporeans to enjoy sailing as well as to produce international champions. The ground breaking ceremony in 1997 was officiated by Ng Ser Miang, then Chairman of the Singapore Sports Council.

NSC was officially opened by the Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong in 1999. In 2000 the Singapore Yachting Association adopted the name of Singapore Sailing Federation, also known as SingaporeSailing. This marked the beginning of the corporatising and professionalising of the sport in Singapore.

Formalised Sailing in Schools

The National Optimist Sailing Scheme (NOSS), set up in 1987, actively roped in primary schools in the East Coast and Marine Parade area and devised structured sailing programmes for students with sailing as their Extra-Curricular Activity (ECA). In 1999, the rapidly growing Singapore Optimist Fleet formed a National Optimist Sailing Squad comprising 20 sailors and two coaches. This squad was to be reviewed every six months, and marked the start of a new era of sailing in Singapore where young talents were identified for intensive training.

Unveiled in early 2003, the High Performance Sailing Strategic plan formed the road map for Singapore’s Olympic quest. Teamwork was the essence of the blueprint and in 2004, SingaporeSailing launched "Power of One”, a conference.

A performance watershed occurred in mid-2005. The 420 pair of Teo Wee Chin and Terence Koh won the ISAF Youth Sailing World Championships, the first Asian team to get the gold medal in the championship’s since it inception 35-year before.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.sailing.org/about-isaf/mna/singapore.php
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