When I was employed by the Badminton World Federation at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, I had the opportunity to meet basketball players from all over the world who were well-educated and had “day jobs.” The comprehensive and holistic development of athletes from school-going age is a key difference that sets the governing excellent badminton nations apart from the rest of the world.
Even with the best of skills, there was no true thoughts for a young Singaporean basketball player even before the Singapore Sports School was founded in 2004.
The unique, all-encompassing training they received during their crucial teenage years made it possible for the Paris 2024 Olympic badminton quartet ( Loh Kean Yew, Terry Hee, Jessica Tan, and Yeo Jia Min ), who are all graduates of the Singapore Sports School.
THE ART AND SCIENCE OF BADMINTON
Badminton is a success story for the Singapore Sports School, which is now in its 20th time, by restoring a student route to the Olympics.
The historic achievements of previous Singapore greats probably lies in perfecting the art of badminton because it is a very specialized sport that combines science and art.
But, basketball has experienced a renaissance over the past two years. Due to changes in the scoring method and the world’s efforts to expand the sport, badminton has significantly expanded in scope and strength. More than ever, sports knowledge is required to crack down on novel strategies, reduce injuries, and increase durability.
Singapore’s academic prowess have likely given our nation’s badminton players who entered the Singapore Sports School pipeline a competitive edge in this area.