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Feature
Singapore: Sports Hub of the Future
How does a nation of less than 5 million
people and ranked 192
nd
out of 234
countries in size manage to win the right
to stage the inaugural Youth Olympic
Games, the first Formula 1 Grand Prix
night race and numerous other prestigious
events? Mr Oon, Chief Executive Officer
of the Singapore Sports Council (SSC)
suggests it is a combination of macro and
micro attributes that makes Singapore an
ideal location for sporting events.
From a macro perspective he cites
Singapore’s good geographical position
in a continent where sport is booming
(according to one global study the total
value of the Asia Pacific sports market
should reach US $17 billion by 2011), the
financial stability, excellent infrastructure
and communications of the country
and the willingness of the government
to support this drive. Add to these the
excellent training facilities which were
used by 32 countries in the run up to the
Beijing Olympics, the wealth of doctors,
physiotherapists and the ordered and
structured approach to planning and you
can see why the country is becoming a
major venue for the top sporting events.
Other major events that Singapore
has already lined up or is targeting are
the 1
st
Asian Youth Games and Men’s
Junior Hockey World Cup both this year,
Rugby World 7’s and the World Netball
Championships in 2011.
So what are Singapore’s motives in bidding
for these events? Mr Oon points out that,
“If showcasing to the world is the only
objective then it becomes a cost, whereas
if you are able to create mini ecosystems
through these events and construct and
upgrade facilities for the future, you build
a legacy.”
Sports Hub development
There is no doubt that Singapore
is building for the future. Singapore
Sports Hub, a Sing$1.87 billion (net
present value) public-private partnership
development project that will be
developed over 25 years, is described
by Mr Oon as a “mega eco system” on
its own. It will be Singapore’s premier
land and sea sports, entertainment and
lifestyle hub. The SSC website describes
it as “a unique cluster development of
world-class sports facilities within the city,
it will play a critical role in accelerating the
development of sports industry, excellence
and participation and take sports to the
next level in Singapore.”
Sports Hub has three main objectives.
It will draw international events to its
world-class facilities and offer events
management enterprises some of
the largest potential crowds ever to
assemble in Singapore. Secondly, it will
encourage large numbers of people
to adopt and pursue sports and make
sport part of their life. Thirdly, it will
offer exceptional opportunities for
sports-related organisations to bring
their message to a large audience.
The Sports Hub will include the following
facilities:
•
A new 55,000-capacity National
Stadium with a retractable roof;
•
A 6,000-capacity indoor Aquatic
Centre that meets world
tournament standards;
•
A 3,000-capacity multi-purpose
arena which will be scalable and
flexible in layout;
•
41,000 sq m of commercial space
•
A Water Sports Centre
•
The existing 12,000-capacity
Singapore Indoor Stadium; and
•
Supporting leisure and commercial
developments
Increasing participation
is the goal
But the role of the SSC is not only about
attracting major events to Singapore, but
also, and primarily, is focused on promoting
sport internally to Singaporeans. Formed
in 1973, the SSC’s vision is to create a
Singapore where sport is a way of life
and it has made great strides in the
past five years in transforming the way
Singaporeans view and participate in
sports. The stated core principles for
sport in Singapore are:
•
Developing resilient & healthy
Singaporeans
•
Bringing a multi-racial society
together
•
Enhancing national pride
•
Contributing to a vibrant society
and economy
•
Strengthening friendships with
other nations
SSC’s strategy has been carefully built
on three equally important thrusts. Mr
Oon summarises these as “increasing
participation, promoting excellence and
encouraging industry development.”
Clearly an area of great personal
satisfaction, he speaks of how weekly
participation in sport in Singapore has
increased from 38% in 2002 to over
50% today and illustrates this further
by describing how the numbers running
the Singapore marathon has grown from
6,300 in 2002 to 50,000 today.
Mr Oon stressed that concentration on
youth is very important – “...in 2005
SSC took a decision to focus on youth
to help to build a sports culture for the
future. The culture in Singapore has
always been very academic based. The
SSC have been targeting schools to get
young people to play sport. We need to
get people involved at early age and they
will generally stay with it. Their parents
also become involved; this is even more
evident with women.”
Singapore has been a highly successful commercial
and financial centre for many years, but now it also
has big ideas to be a major sports hub for Asia and
beyond. Touchline met up with Singapore Sports
Council Chief Executive and former Olympian, Mr Oon
Jin Teik at the SportAccord convention in Denver in
March this year to ask him more about Singapore’s
plans to become a major sports hub of the future.
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