- Team Singapore delivered 5 Gold, 6 Silver and 13 Bronze medals, ranked 15th Asian nation* and third Southeast Asian nation* – *accurate as of 4 Oct, 10.00am
- Chef de Mission Mrs Jessie Phua hails Team Singapore’s performance inspiring, historic and impressive with two Games records, three national records and 13 personal bests
- Spirit of collaboration among team immense, great support from organiser, team and supporters
Incheon, 4 October 2014 – The 2014 edition of the Asian Games came to a close today in the city of Incheon, where 223 athletes representing Singapore delivered a total medal haul of 5 Golds, 6 Silvers and 13 Bronzes for the Republic.
Singapore is one of the only seven countries which has competed in the all 17 editions of the Asian Games since 1951. Team Singapore’s journey at the Asiad over the past 21 days in 20 sports were boosted by inspiring, historic and impressive results which rose Singapore to the ranks of 15th Asian nation and third Southeast Asian nation on the overall medal table.
The bowling, fencing, sailing, shooting, swimming and table tennis teams recorded breakthrough performances in Incheon achieving many firsts for their sports.
Team Singapore athletes, Jasmine Ser and Joseph Schooling, broke two Asian Games records in the women’s individual 50m rifle 3 positions and the men’s swimming 100m butterfly events respectively. Three national records (two in shooting and one in swimming) and 13 personal bests (seven in shooting, five in swimming and one in athletics) were also produced in Incheon (see appendix A for details).
Joseph Schooling won the first men’s gold medal for swimming in 32 years when he set an Asian record in the 100m butterfly event. His top form also earned him a silver medal in the 50m butterfly event and a bronze medal in the 200m butterfly event.
Fencer Lim Wei Wen won Singapore’s first ever first medal in fencing with a bronze in the men’s individual Epee event. The 29-year-old notched a 15-11 victory over Hong Kong in the quarterfinal to earn a spot in the top four, eventually losing to Asian Games champion and Olympic bronze medallist Jung Jin-sun (KOR) in the semi-final.
It was smooth sailing at Wangsan Marina for the 17-strong sailing team. Jodie Lai, at 13 years of age, became Singapore’s youngest ever gold medallist at the Asian Games, winning the women’s Optimist one person dinghy sailing event. Her team mate 12-year-old Raynn Kwok, who won a silver medal in the men’s Optimist event, clocked another record as the youngest medallist for Singapore. Singapore finished joint-second with China with three gold medals each behind South Korea’s haul of four gold medals, emerging as the top Southeast Asian nation in sailing at the Asian Games.
In bowling, the women’s team success in the Women Team of 5 event marked the first time ever Singapore has emerged top in this team event. Jazreel Tan’s four-medal haul (1 gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze) has placed her among the most bemedalled athletes at a single Asian Games in recent history.
Team Singapore paddlers made their first foray into the semi-final of the men’s doubles event when Gao Ning and Li Hu advanced into the top four to win a bronze medal as there is no third-place play-off for losing semi-finalists in this competition. The women’s team won additional two bronze medals in the women’s team and women’s single events.
Team Singapore’s young athletes and debutants have also performed credibly. Of the 223 athletes, 158 made their Asiad debut in Incheon, out of which 19 went home with a medal. Eighty-four athletes were 21 years old and under, of which 80 were debutants and 11 medalled.
Said Chef de Mission Mrs Jessie Phua, “Incheon has played the role of a superb host to Team Singapore over the last three weeks. The support we have received from the organisers, from the medical team to the liaison officers to the volunteers and staff members behind the transportation, games operations and athletes’ village functions, has been crucial to Team Singapore’s performance. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the city and people of Incheon for a wonderful Games”.
“Overall, Team Singapore has performed to expectations and surprised us with many breakthrough performances and records. Two Games records, three national records and 13 personal bests were set. Singapore is ranked 15th nation overall on the medal table, moving up one notch from 16th position at the last Asiad. The competition field in Asia in many sports is world-class, to improve on our position is testament to the improving standards of our athletes. This bodes well for the future where Team Singapore will strive to aim towards continued Olympic success, and to do their best in front of the home crowd at the 2015 SEA Games.
“I would also like to extend my gratitude and credit to the stakeholders behind Team Singapore who have all played important roles in supporting our athletes as they push themselves to the forefront of sports.”
