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MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
25th January 2005
Christening Ceremony of ‘VICTORY’
Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, Acting Minister, Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports will be the Guest-of-Honour at the Singapore Disability Sports Council’s (SDSC) christening ceremony of its newly acquired SONAR boat, ‘VICTORY’.
SDSC will be holding the christening ceremony for ‘VICTORY’ on:
Date: Sunday, 30th January 2005
Time: 10.00am to Noon
Venue: Changi Sailing Club, 32 Netheravon Road, Singapore 508508
The acquisition of the SONAR boat will certainly help SDSC to attract more people with disabilities to take up sailing as a sport under the SDSC’s ‘SAILABILITY Singapore’ programmes.
SAILABILITY is a world wide movement that facilitate sailing programme for the disabled. SAILABILITY promotes ideals of integration by using boats which can be sailed efficiently by both able-bodied and disabled sailors. SAILABILITY helps to create more accessible sailing venues and an atmosphere which foster fun and recreation for all.
In 1999, 4 national sailors - Siew Shaw Her, Colin Ng, Naomi Tan and Joan Huang upon receiving the Singapore Totalisator Board’s “Excellence for Singapore Award”, came to a unanimous vote to use the $10,000 prize money to promote sailing as a sport for the disabled. The Award was given to the 4 sailors for their collective Gold medal efforts at the 1998 Asian Games.
It was a unanimous vote by the four sailors, led by the Singapore Sailing Federation that the $10,000 that came with the Award be dedicated towards the promotion of disabled sailing in Singapore.
SAILABILITY Singapore was introduced as a programme for disabled people of all ages to learn sailing, with a larger aim of creating a global community of disabled sailors who would represent their countries in the sport. Singapore was one of the pioneer adoptees of the SAILABILITY programme.
SAILABILITY Singapore was officially launched by Mr Chng Heng Kok, Member of Parliament for East Coast GRC on 18 June 2000. Through the support of Singapore Sports Council, Singapore Sailing Federation, Changi Sailing Club and the generous sponsorship from the Neptune Orient Lines Group and APL, SDSC was able to initiate the SAILABILITY Singapore programme where we are now able to introduce sailing to the disabled community in Singapore.
Today, SAILABILITY Singapore signifies the continuing effort by SDSC to meet the needs of the disabled and their inclusion into mainstream sports and recreational activities. SAILABILITY Singapore helps the disabled to lead a more independent life and see ability through sailability.
From what began as a humble sailing experience for our sailors, we’ve grown from strength to strength, leveraging on the talent and skills of our sailors to form a vision of disabled sailing excellence. SAILABILITY Singapore is a programme that has successfully helped the disabled to triumph over their disabilities to live a fuller and more independent life. It also gives the disabled an opportunity to participate and excel in sailing.
Following up from their impressive debut at the Athens 2004 Paralympic Games, our sailors did Singapore proud once again when they won 1st place at the recent 11th Singapore Straits Regatta (19th – 23rd Jan 2005). The victory was all the more memorable as our sailors were up against able-bodied sailors from Singapore and the region.
SAILABILITY Singapore has also expanded beyond the shores of Singapore as we have also rendered assistance and expertise to help neighbouring ASEAN countries such as Malaysia to launch their sailability programmes. It is SAILABILITY Singapore’s vision that one day, more and more people with disabilities can participate in sailing and excel in the sports at various regional and international regattas and championships.