FTs winning: to be proud, or not to be.

Now, recently the Singapore Table Tennis team beat China to win some World Championships. This has caused a spark among S'poreans because the people who won are 'imports' from China.

The problems many locals are having about this win is that at the end of the day, it's still China vs China.

Feng Tianwei, who made a surprising comeback to take the game right under the nose of China's World number 4, despite being raised here in the Lion City, is still not recognised by many S'poreans as a local.

Yes, I agree Singapore has brought in countless Foreign Talents(FTs) into the sporting scene and most of the trophies gotten from major competitions in recent years were from the FTs. But has it ever occured to S'poreans that it is due to their incompetence that the FTs are representing the Nation instead of locals? I'm not saying that local athletes are useless. In fact, every athlete from every corner of the world has the ability to surpass world champions.

Perhaps some S'poreans are worried that the team selection was biased, and that the once Chinese Nationals were selected due to their nationality. I do not work in or for the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA), thus I cannot comment on that. But if STTA is able to come out and share how athletes are chosen, then at least one worry is striked out.

In my opinion, coaches will only send the best players of a team to compete. Thus, if the local Table Tennis players can outskill the abilities of the FTs, then they would be the ones representing the Nation.

Doing a general comparison, the FTs train harder and are more determined to improve. Simply said, they've got a higher work rate. This is shown not only in sports, but also in classrooms, as some would realise. The attitude that the FTs are showing is something local athletes should look to possess. Perhaps some already do, but just do not have the talent to outshine the FTs.

Local athletes should use 'imported' players as sparring partners and look to beat them, part of Singapore Sports Council's purpose of coming up with the Foreign Talent Scheme. The citizens of the Republic should stop complaining about how FTs are taking over in all aspects. They must know that world is cruel, and so is reality. If you're the weaker link, then you will get taken off the charts and someone stronger will take over.

[Posted with iBlogger from my iPhone]

Still the same

After so long, it's still you I'm thinking of everyday without fail. I've tried to let go, but failed. It's really really hard for me. Sigh.





I really wanna hear you call me 'boy' again. =\

[Posted with iBlogger from my iPhone]

RPDB

i just finished my final race with RPDB on Sunday. MR 500 was really a blast. i was really disappointed that we didn't beat NTU for the Tertiary gold on Saturday(my very last chance to do so). but on Sunday, we managed to clinch third position for the Men's Open Grand Final, beating all other teams except the National Team and, yes, NTU. though we still lost to NTU, by an even closer margin than the day before, i was really contented because everyone achieved the team's common goal and put up a really good fight.

i would like to thank the team for the excellent ride on the boat for the Men's Grand Final and also for all their efforts in making the results possible. without each and everyone of you, none of that could have happened. continue to train hard, because the longer you stay in 'hell', the faster you'll reach 'heaven' to reap the benefits.

i also hereby express my gratitude to JD for his guidance to the team. a soft-spoken and humble coach that has brought the team to even greater heights, continuing the legacy Steve and himself created for the team since the start of RPDB.

i wish the team all the best. in future, we won't be teammates, but opponents. i still want to see the team rise, but i guarantee you, i will train even harder from now to beat you guys if we ever meet on the race course. no hard feelings though. =]





i leave you all with a few quotes that may help in motivating yourselves to train harder:

"success comes only if there's HARDWORK and SHEER DETERMINATION"

"one's attitude determines two possible results, SUCCESS or FAILURE"

"you CONSERVE, you LOSE"

Finished

everything's gone and nothing will ever be the same again.

"don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened"

easier said than done, but i'll have to try.

Thoughts In My Mind

my final race for RPDB, MR 500, is coming this weekend and i know i should just focus on it. but there's so many thoughts, outside Dragon Boat, running through my head right now.

things are not looking good. i have a really bad feeling about something, just hope that i'm wrong.

imy, A LOT.

sigh.

What's Wrong?

tears rolled down my cheeks as soon as the texting stopped. i have no idea what's going on now.

sigh.

cheer up.

Fatigue

i'm feeling the effects of burnout, as a result of overtraining i guess.

recently, i made the decision, along with Christo, to paddle for RP and SAFSA; Louis paddling for SAFSA only. both teams are training on weekends, RP in the morning, SAFSA in the noon. and because both sides are starting to pick up the training volume and intensity, i'm getting more fatigued.

i'm just really worried that i won't be able to pull through this. but i really don't want to let go of either team. for now, i just got to keep finding motivations to keep me going.

it's POL-ITE and SDBF glory i'm looking for, and i will push hard enough to get them.