S’pore to have its own YOG torch run
Organisers to stick with tradition despite Beijing’s flame trouble
By LEE U-WEN
(SINGAPORE) While Singapore will not be part of the Beijing Olympics torch relay’s upcoming Asian leg, it has been confirmed that the iconic flame will be a key feature of the inaugural Youth Olympic Games (YOG), which will be staged here in 2010.
Mr Bubka: The flame symbolises peace and can move and unite people
Despite the ongoing controversy surrounding China’s torch relay, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will keep with tradition and give Singapore its very own torch run, said chairman of the IOC coordination commission, Sergey Bubka.
Mr Bubka, a former Olympic pole-vaulting champion, is head of an 11-member delegation visiting Singapore to assist the Republic’s YOG organising committee as it prepares to host the Games.
‘The flame is a really unique and great symbol that symbolises peace and can move and unite people, so we need to discuss how the torch run will be organised,’ he told reporters.
Details are still being worked out as to whether the torch run route will be purely a local one, or include regional neighbours and beyond.
Trouble has dogged the Beijing torch relay since protesters disrupted the flame lighting ceremony in Greece last month, following China’s crackdown in the Himalayan region of Tibet.
Singapore Community Development, Youth and Sports Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said that he viewed the protests partly ‘as a problem of success’.
‘It shows the Olympic movement has a worldwide impact, and because of such an impact, other people with other agendas will want to hijack this process,’ he said.
He added: ‘We want to engage young people, and they will have deeply and strongly-held views that they want to express. But we must make sure that they have avenues to do so, but done in a way that celebrates the Olympic values of friendship and respect.’
At the IOC workshop conducted yesterday at the Singapore organising committee’s headquarters at Kay Siang Road, it was also revealed that none of the competition records would be registered for the YOG, which will have 200 customised events in 26 different sports.
Mr Bubka, 44, explained: ‘In many international federations, there are no championships on this level. You cannot force youngsters at this age (14 to 18 years old) to do so much just to set the record and maybe damage their body. It’s not necessary at this age to speed up development in their career.’
But should any national or world record be broken, a panel of judges will be called upon to assess the results and these will be documented appropriately, said Mr Bubka.
Close to 3,500 athletes from 205 countries will descend on Singapore for the inaugural YOG, which will kick off on Aug 14, 2010. Besides taking part in their respective events, they all have to go through a compulsory education and culture programme.
Dr Balakrishnan, who supports the IOC’s decision to not focus on sporting records, said that Singapore will finalise its list of athletes and teams taking part by this September.
‘This is a great opportunity for all our National Sports Associations to quickly come up to scratch, and showcase their talent. We have two years to identify, nurture and prepare our young athletes to compete at the highest level in their age groups,’ he said.
The IOC team, meanwhile, will continue its workshops here until Friday. It will also visit and assess most of the 22 competition venues earmarked for the event.
Source : Business Times - 15 April 2008
Singapore Property - Buy , Sell , Rent , Invest
Mindy Yong
(+65)91002985
mindy@mindyyong.com
Bedok @ Bedok Sth Ave 1 »« Ang Mo Kio @ Ang Mo Kio Ave 3
