Chauffeured in a swanky convoy of sports cars, Singapore’s 2016 Paralympians were the toast of the town yesterday as they celebrated the country’s best performance at the Games with a half-day parade.

The 13-strong contingent were ferried in 11 Ferraris and two London cabs from Sengkang Sports Centre to VivoCity via the National Library, in honour of their fine showing in Rio de Janeiro, where Yip Pin Xiu won two golds and Theresa Goh clinched a bronze.

Back home, the sun was at its sizzling best yesterday but so were the spirits of the approximately 1,000 fans who turned up to cheer the para-athletes at designated pit stops and cheering points.

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Paralympians parade for Team Singapore

Source:

The Straits Times

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It was the second public celebration of sporting success in quick succession. Last month, swimmer Joseph Schooling embarked on an open-top bus parade to celebrate his Olympic gold, the country’s first.

Yip, who also won a Paralympic gold at the 2008 Games, said: “Many Singaporeans stood under the sun to welcome us and we feel very touched that a lot of people would do that.

“We thank everybody for their support and we’re so honoured to be able to do Singapore proud.

“This is really a good opportunity to be able to showcase what para sport is and how sport can unite a nation.”

Proceedings started at Sengkang Sports Centre, where more than 100 fans rose early to catch a glimpse of the Paralympians.

Among them was Joanne Choo, there with parents Ging Yang and Sally. The 11-year-old said: “I read about Pin Xiu in the newspapers. She is an inspiration for me to work harder and to excel.

“I’m writing a speech about her for a public speaking course and wanted to see her in person.”

Minister of State for Health Lam Pin Min was also present. He hailed the team for their good showing and said they were an inspiration to all Singaporeans.

The entourage then left for the National Library. Along the way, they passed through Yip’s Serangoon neighbourhood, where a huge crowd had formed at Braddell Heights Community Club to wave as the Ferrari carrying Yip zoomed past.

The convoy also passed by Yip’s alma mater, Bendemeer Primary School, where some pupils and teachers stood waving mini Singapore flags.

At the National Library, Central Singapore District Mayor Denise Phua welcomed the contingent, together with students from Pathlight School, volunteers from welfare organisation Peace Connect and senior citizens from Kampong Glam.

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Fans welcome Team Singapore’s Paralympians

Source:

The Straits Times

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The para-athletes were given tokens of appreciation by the Singapore Management University, where Yip is a social sciences undergraduate. It is also boccia player Nurulasyiqah Taha’s alma mater.

After a short break, the party headed for VivoCity, where some 400 fans waited to congratulate them. They were led by Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Grace Fu, who told them: “Thank you for making us very proud… and we look forward to even more spectacular performances on behalf of Singapore.”

At each stop, emcees held question-and-answer sessions for the public to get to know the athletes better. And this was how they learnt that Yip ate kway chap, nasi lemak, chwee kuay and fishball noodles – shared with her brother and sister-in-law – upon her return from Rio.

Also joining in the weekend jamboree were national athletes Shayna Ng (bowling) and Stephenie Chen (canoeing), who hosted a live session for the Team Singapore Facebook page.

The duo were also there to cheer for good friends Yip and Goh. Together, they are part of a 14-strong group of friends, many of them national athletes, who call themselves the “Sexayyss”.

The Paralympians will get another hurrah in Parliament, the same honour Schooling received.

Yesterday, Ms Fu wrote on Facebook: “By showing, so evidently, their tenacity and resilience to fly Singapore’s flag high, our Paralympians have brought out the Singapore Spirit in us.

Yip Pin Xiu clinches Singapore’s second gold medal at Paralympics

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

AFP, Reuters, The Straits Times, MCCY, Singapore Sports Council

“I have invited the entire team of Paralympians to one of the upcoming Parliament sittings, to pay tribute to them for their extraordinary achievements.”

Yesterday’s festivities had some noting how far para sport had come in both achieving excellence and raising its public profile.

“Five years ago, it was hard to envisage such an outpouring of support for para-athletes,” said Mr Tang Siew Hong, 61, an IT manager who is the father of para-swimmer Joshua Tang, 24.

Added former Olympian C. Kunalan, 74, who was at the library to lend his support: “These athletes have done something really unique that they’ve been doing for years, but without much support and visibility.

“I’m glad that there is new interest in para games and I hope this interest continues to keep up.”

siangyee@sph.com.sg

Additional reporting by Alvin Chia and Nicole Chia

Ms Nicole Lee was hanging out at Clarke Quay into the early hours of a recent Sunday when she decided to book an Uber ride to her home in Clementi.

The journey took just 30 minutes but it was a “horrifying” ride, said the trade publications editor. Soon after getting into the car, the Uber driver bragged that he had been out drinking before he picked her up at 4.12am.

Despite repeated requests by Ms Lee, 23, to be let out of his car, he insisted on going ahead with the trip. He kept offering to take her to a house party, and also asked her out to supper.

He later asked for her phone number and would not let her out of the car at her destination until she complied.

Private-hire car service Uber confirmed with The Sunday Times last Monday that the driver – who it has not named – has been suspended and investigations are ongoing.

This month, Uber also suspended another driver, apparently over a passenger complaint that he had allowed someone else to ferry passengers using his account. Uber said it could not reveal details of either case, due to privacy policies between drivers and passengers.

Mr Leigh Wong, Uber’s head of communications for Singapore and Malaysia, said: “Our standard operating procedure in these instances is to wait-list the driver’s account, then pending an investigation, to address any issues accordingly.”

Ms Lee, however, wants to know how the driver will be dealt with, and if he will be “blacklisted”.

Recounting the events of that morning, Ms Lee said she continued with the ride as she thought the driver – who looked to be in his 20s – was just showing off about his drinking habits and he also appeared to be able to drive well.

But she said her fears that he may have had too much to drink were revived when they approached a police roadblock near Ngee Ann Polytechnic at about 4.30am.

“He panicked and told me – ‘I cannot take the (breathalyser) test’. At the roadblock, he told the police that he was an Uber driver and was taking me home. They let him pass,” she said.

Ms Lee said he later asked for her phone number and refused to let her out of the car unless she complied. “At that point, I was quite eager to go home, so I gave it to him,” she said, adding that she wanted to elicit a “confession” from him later that he had been drinking.

In a WhatsApp conversation Ms Lee showed to The Sunday Times, the driver replied “200 for 2 towers or one bottle of Chivas”, when she asked him about his drinking.

The Sunday Times tried but could not contact the driver. In the Uber app, drivers and passengers are known to each other only by their account names, which may not be their real names.

When asked by The Sunday Times, Uber did not say how many drivers it has suspended.

Grab, the other major player in the ride-hailing industry here, assured commuters that terminations made up a “very small percentage of the total number of Grab drivers”.

“We investigate all complaints or reports of errant drivers, and then carefully consider, against our promulgated code of conduct, the best action to take… Errant drivers will be penalised with actions ranging from warnings to suspension,” said Mr Lim Kell Jay, head of Grab Singapore.

Ms Lee said she will still use Uber. “Because it’s cheap, I’m still taking Uber. But now I stay off Uber past midnight and will take a taxi, since it’s properly licensed,” she added.

adrianl@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on September 25, 2016.
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