Attending one major sporting event in France was not enough for Mr Ko Chong Tat.
Not only did he attend the Formula 1 Grand Prix De Monaco 2016, he also caught the Roland Garros – The 2016 French Open, and is in the midst of enjoying the Uefa Euro 2016.
The 27-year-old said: “I have always been a fan of sports, and the Monte Carlo track circuit as well as the clay tennis court are things one can’t experience in Singapore.”
“It was also a good opportunity for me to catch all three events within three weeks.”
He was fortunate to have escaped the Euro 2016 violence that took place between the fans before, during and after the England versus Russia match on Saturday in Marseilles, France.
He had left the country for the day for a friend’s wedding in Germany.
“I count myself lucky as although I wanted to be at the match, I had to be at my friend’s wedding in Germany and thankfully avoided the fights.”
He is expected to catch the match between France and Albania early this morning in the very stadium in Marseilles where the fan violence had broken out just days before.
He attributed the violence to the alcohol that fans drank, but added that the majority of the fans at the four matches he had caught so far were friendly and welcoming.
SECURITY
But he said the security was not as tight as he would have liked.
Although there were more policemen and heavily armed national guards deployed to patrol the stadiums and the areas that lead to the metro stations, Mr Ko felt that the checks on fans were not as thorough.
He said: “To my surprise and horror, there were no metal detectors used during the Euro 2016 and there were only two rounds of checks.”
The race and tennis match have also left a big impression on him.
During the F1 race in Monaco, Mr Ko saw driver Max Verstappen crash right in front of him during the qualifying rounds.
And at the French Open, he was able to get into the VIP area of the court and meet professional tennis player Kei Nishikori.
“On the first day of the French Open, I got a selfie with Milos Raonic, and a used towel from Kei,” he said.
Mr Ko, a bank analyst, spent between $10,000 and $14,000 on his 24-day trip.
The money came from his savings, which he puts $1,000 into each month, beginning last year.
His boss was fully supportive of his trip and allowed him take a month of paid leave, he said.
“He’s a fan of football and he understood why I wanted to do this,” Mr Ko said.
He will be back home on June 20 after he catches a preview show of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in London.
“I managed to catch the tail end of the World Cup in 2014, so I wanted to watch the opening matches of Euro 2016 to experience how the teams play differently.
“I was also lucky enough to get tickets to the Harry Potter play as I heard that it is sold out,” he said.
Mr Ko hopes this will not be the last of such trips for him.
“It is very hard to get the three sports events, my friend’s wedding and the Harry Potter play to all fall nicely into place, and I doubt it would happen any time soon again.”
His trip has inspired his friend to take a trip to Europe.
Mr Andre Natanael, 28, said: “I definitely want to be in his place. I’m planning a trip to Europe, too, for about two to three weeks.”
“He posted pictures of Paris on Facebook, and that kind of influenced me to want to go there.”
mgovin@sph.com.sg
This article was first published on June 16, 2016.
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