1. Tell us more about yourself and your volleyball life.
My passion for volleyball started when I was 13 years old. I represented schools and clubs for both local and overseas competitions. I also played for SAF for about 7 years when I was a regular in the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF). I still play casually and take part in competitions in Singapore and overseas.
I graduated from Auckland University of Technology with a Bachelor of Health Science (Physiotherapy) and I work at a private clinic dealing with musculoskeletal conditions which I founded with a few business partners.
2. What are you doing to contribute to volleyball in Singapore?
I first visited a physiotherapist when I sustained sports related injuries in my 20s. That visit triggered my interest in physiotherapy and I remembered thinking “It will be great if I know how to treat sports men and women and even my volleyball friends when they have an injury”.
With my own physiotherapy clinic, I now have the opportunities to do so. I will like to create greater awareness regarding prevention and management of sports injuries. I am also keen to support local volleyball competitions and educating our players about prevention and treatment. In fact, this year my clinic partnered the Volleyball Association of Singapore (VAS) and supported our young athletes as part of the VAS Under-13 and Under-16 Volleyball Championships.
I will like to see volleyball flourish in Singapore. I also look forward to seeing our coaches grooming more players and helping to elevate Singapore volleyball to the next level. I see myself contributing to Singapore volleyball by helping to educate players about prevention and management of injuries. And of course, I intend to continuing playing as long as I can!
I have seen many players (especially younger players) at a loss after sustaining an injury and they may be unsure whether they should just rest, visit a General Practitioner (GP) or perhaps get an X-ray at the hospital. In fact, a lot of them left the injuries to recover on its own. I have also seen some giving up the sport totally due to injuries and it is a shame, as these injuries could have been properly managed and these players could have continued playing!
3. What will you do to encourage more volleyballers to contribute in their own ways, to give back to the sport?
Many of my volleyball friends and teammates become coaches, referees and even setting up volleyball academies to continue their love for the game. These are the most direct way of contributing to the sport.
Some friends introduced the sport to their children and it is wonderful to see the family share their passion for volleyball with their children. You can also see many of these parents coming to support their children at age-group competitions.
I have also seen growing popularity of the sport (especially beach volleyball) within the community and I hope the number of participants will continue to increase. I heard volleyball is the third most participated (popular) team sports in the recent ActiveSG event, after football and basketball, and that it fantastic!
For me, I will continue playing for as long as I can and I can help by educating players who has injuries that are stopping them from keeping active.
For those who may have stopped playing volleyball, I would encourage them to pick up the sport again, as you are never too old or too unfit to play and enjoy the sport. The key is to understand how to prevent injuries, and if it happened, the right ways of managing them.