Parliament sits
Parliament sits at noon on Monday (Aug 15) with the recent Auditor-General’s report flagging public sector lapses and the recall of MRT trains with cracks on the agenda. A motion will also be moved to congratulate swim star Joseph Schooling on…
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TODAY’s brief, Monday, Aug 15
Schooling’s all pumped up for a frenzied four days in Singapore
SINGAPORE – Newly-minted Olympic champion Joseph Schooling will be thrust into a whirlwind of activity the moment he returns home to Singapore on Monday morning (Aug 15) for his four-day stay.
The 21-year-old, who will be arriving at Belt 42, Terminal 3 of…
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Brands quick to clamber on board the Schooling celebrations bandwagon
SINGAPORE – Several local and international brands are rushing to celebrate Joseph Schooling’s historic achievement of winning Singapore’s first-ever Olympic gold medal, and also capitalise on it.
On Saturday morning (Aug 13), the 21-year-old clinched gold in…
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Shuttler Derek Wong eyes retirement as Malaysia’s Lee sweeps into last 16
Singapore’s top male badminton player Derek Wong bowed out of the Rio Olympics – and potentially the sport itself – on Sunday (Aug 14), falling to the precision and power of world number one Lee Chong Wei.
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United States wins 1,000th Olympic gold medal
The United States won its 1,000th Olympic gold medal on Saturday when the American women’s 4×100 meter medley relay team clinched victory at the Rio Games.
The honour of reaching the milestone was shared by Kathleen Baker, Lilly King, Dana Vollmer and Simone Manuel, who got to the wall first ahead of Australia.
“One thousand gold medals is a remarkable achievement made possible by the culture of sport that is the fabric and foundation of Team USA,” United States Olympic Committee (USOC) head Scott Blackmun said.
Of the 1,000 gold medals, more than half have come from track and field (323) and swimming (246), USOC added.
The US team had arrived in Rio with 977 gold medals, according to Olympstats.com, and had sat on 998 for much of Saturday until long jumper Jeff Henderson put them on the brink with his victory.
Sprinter Tori Bowie nearly took the US over the top in the 100 meters but she was finished second behind Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson, leaving it up to the swimmers to complete the feat.
“It really makes me think about all the generations of Olympic teams and athletes I watched and the inspiration that I have had,” Vollmer said.
“We’re here getting that 1,000th medal for the US and it seems absolutely incredible.
“We’ve had an amazing Games and so many people getting their hand to the wall one after another we’ve fed off that and this is a great way to end.”
If the US women had not captured the landmark medal, Michael Phelps and the men’s 4×100 medley relay squad would have done so, the quartet winning gold in the next event in the pool, which was also the final race on the Rio swimming programme.
Manuel might have also had a chance to grab the 1,000th earlier in the 50 freestyle but finished 0.02 seconds behind Denmark’s Pernille Blume.
“It’s really special that I could do it with the relay is amazing, just sharing it with three other women is icing on top of the cake,” said Manuel.
“I mean 1,000 gold for the USA is a nice number.”
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AFP, Reuters, The Straits Times
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Sunday, August 14, 2016 – 21:58
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Schooling may continue to have National Service deferred: Ng Eng Hen
Olympic gold medallist Joseph Schooling may continue to have his National Service deferred if the swimmer continues to meet the conditions set, says Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen.
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Malaysia hunting owner of mobile phone involved in Thai bombings
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PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) will work closely with police to track down the owner of the mobile phone used to detonate bombs in the recent Thai bombings.
In a statement Sunday, the MCMC said it would work closely with police and other relevant agencies in tracking down the owner according to the serial of the phone.
Bernama reported that Thai security forces have asked for Malaysia’s help in their investigation into a series of bomb blasts in several districts in the southern part of the country, which killed four people and injured 35.
The report quoted a security source said Thailand had requested help to trace the owner of a handphone, said to be from Malaysia, used to detonate one of the bombs in Phuket.
The source said the blast did not destroy part of the handphone and the serial number of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) on the phone was still visible while Thai investigators have asked Malaysia’s co-operation to identify the origin of the handphone.
Meanwhile, Bernama reported on Saturday that police had already received fragments of the of the phone that contained the serial number of the MCMC on the phone.
The report quoted Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar saying that they received a fragment has the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission’s (MCMC) serial number on it.
Khalid was quoted in the report saying that police were willing to give full co-operation to Thailand’s authorities to facilitate investigations into the incident,
Handphones were used to detonate the self-made bombs during the blasts that shattered the southern part of the country, including Phuket, Hua Hin and several popular tourist spots.
On Aug 10, security officials found two self-made bombs at Phuket’s Paradise Market and China Town Market after a tip-off, and successfully deactivated them.
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AFP
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Sunday, August 14, 2016 – 21:38
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Olympics: Singapore shuttler Derek Wong out after losing to Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei
Singapore shuttler Derek Wong’s Rio 2016 Olympics campaign is over after he lost to world number one Lee Chong Wei 18-21, 6-21 on Sunday (Aug 14).
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Schooling will always be domestic helper Auntie Yolly's 'waterboy'
Coaches, teammates and rivals may have seen the evolution of Joseph Schooling the swimmer.
But very few would have witnessed the boy-to-man story of Singapore’s Olympic champion from diapers to the Mizuno trunks who went prospecting in Rio de Janeiro and struck gold.
Ms Yolanda Pascual, or “Auntie Yolly”, is Schooling’s loyal domestic helper who has seen him through his formative years to adulthood, although in her loving eyes he is always her “waterboy”.
In a Sunday Times phone interview yesterday, she said: “I’ve always believed in him. I was watching and shouting for him. I cannot express how happy I am… I was jumping and crying after he won.”
Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source:
Twitter screengrabs, Facebook screengrabs, Facebook/SGAG
Still working for the Schooling household after 19 years, the pair have always been close. The 21-year-old Olympic gold medallist has even called her a “second mum” in a YouTube video made by Singtel, where he showed his appreciation for her support.
She said: “When I miss him, I read our messages (on the phone). He’s like my own son.”
The Filipina started working for Schooling’s family in 1997. She recalled: “He was playful like all boys, but (has) always been loving and caring and a very good boy. He never shouts at me or anybody.”
The Filipina started working for Schooling’s family in 1997. She recalled: “He was playful like all boys, but (has) always been loving and caring and a very good boy. He never shouts at me or anybody.”
The 56-year-old has a file filled with newspaper clippings of him.
She said: “He’ll always say ‘I want to be No. 1’. I remember once we were watching (Michael) Phelps on TV, he told me he wanted to be there and be like him, and I knew he could do it. He has a very strong will; if he wants something, he’ll get it.”
But he never quite had a normal childhood – a sacrifice he made to get into the record books. “When friends asked (him) to go out, he usually couldn’t because he had practice early the next day,” said Ms Pascual, who is married with two daughters.
When he experienced lows, she would always be there, behind the scenes, to pick him up.
She said: “He told me when he was very tired, and I’d give him a massage. Even now, when he comes back, he still asks for massages and he’s still like the young boy he was before he left.”
Related: The road to Olympic gold
Friends tell of swimmer’s competitive streak
They are the best of buddies in the Singapore swim team, goofing around for wefies, and you can even say they are brothers from different parents.
And Teo Zhen Ren knows, intimately, the fierce competitive streak that lurks in Joseph Schooling despite his cherubic face.
The pair were rivals who used to race each other in their childhood but are now close buddies. Teo is an Arsenal fan while Schooling supports Chelsea. Teo went to Raffles Institution while Schooling went to Anglo-Chinese School (Independent).Teo, 22, said: “We’ve played a lot of sports together – Fifa (a computer game), table football, pool, even bowling. He can’t stand losing.
“He’s never afraid as well. On the last par for golf, the last shot to win at pool, he always steps up.
“We always have friendly trashtalk with each other. When I broke the national record, I told him ‘I broke the national record, you haven’t’. I’ve also said to him, ‘You’re never going to win the Asian Games gold’ and ‘Phelps will definitely catch up to you’.
“Most athletes might start doubting themselves but it works with Joseph because he’s not afraid and wants to prove people wrong.
“Most swimmers say they want to go to the Olympics; for him, it’s always been about winning.”
Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source:
The Straits Times, Reuters, AFP
David Lim, one of Schooling’s former coaches and a former Olympian, said: “It’s as though he tasted the feeling of winning when young and he’s addicted to that feeling.”
Warren Seow, Schooling’s former classmate at ACS (I), said: “He was competitive even during PE lessons. He would try to run faster and be at his best when we played games like football. It’s hard to believe that same boy would win gold at the Olympics.”
Lim believes that because Schooling has this addiction to winning, he is not done yet, saying: “After he’s let it sink in, there are other things he could be eyeing. First, the world record, then (Tokyo) 2020. Now that he’s Olympic champ, he’ll swim the 100 fly. But another way of motivating himself is to increase his repertoire of events.”
Related: Schooling learnt to be fearless from first coach
jeaniau@sph.com.sg
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Sunday, August 14, 2016 – 20:07
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Schooling still asks 'second mum' for massages when he's tired
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As it happens: 2016 Olympics Day 9, Aug 14
Channel NewsAsia brings you live updates of the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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