Forging forward to enhance our entire sports sector

Closing statement of Parliamentary Motion by Mr Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth & Second Minister for Law, to honour Team Singapore Olympians and Paralympians, in particular Ms Yip Pin Xiu, Singapore's 5-time Paralympic Gold Medalist, for their achievements at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games

1. Mr Speaker,
2. I thank the various Members who have spoken in support of the Motion so wholeheartedly. Even as we celebrate the successes today, I thank them for their vision and suggestions in looking forward and looking ahead on what else we can do.
3. I thank Mr Seah for his pledge to continue to support sports and in particular, for him, in his capacity in Fairprice, to lead the initiatives to contribute to sports.
4. I thank Associate Professor Jamus Lim’s and Ms Denise Phua’s suggestions and also their reiteration that sports, like many other situations in life, we have to cater to the vicissitudes of the circumstances, and that itself not ought to diminish the achievements of our sporting talents.
5. As usual, Ms Phua has also set me a task and also thank you for acknowledging my alternative career as a sports commentator. I will take on board the suggestions and of course be accountable to the various initiatives that she’s set out. I have no doubt she will ask me to explain the dashboard to her on a different occasion.
6. I thank Mr Mark Chay for sharing your own experience, unique as it is. Once an Olympian, now coach of a Paralympian champion. Your insights being in the system, showing us your view from the inside, understanding the different moving parts between SNPC, SNOC, SDSC – all the acronyms – coming together really says a lot about the village and the support that we have as a village, to ensure the successes of our athletes.
7. I thank Ms Poh for the very thoughtful and considered suggestions. There are many of them. We will take them on board and review them closely with SportSG.
8. And finally, I thank Mr Sitoh for his suggestions, the reiteration that we will work with the private sector and that there is a lot of good that will come out of this partnership, as I’ve mentioned earlier in my opening speech.
9. I underscore the point that we will reimagine our sports framework to ensure that all levels of participation from the grassroots through to the elite sporting talents, will be given opportunities through programmes like the spexScholarship and others to allow athletes to realise their full potential.
10. On this, let me come back to the motion and reiterate our gratitude, our thanks and our deepest warmest congratulations to all of our Team SG athletes – Olympians, Paralympians and in particular our gold medalist champion from Tokyo 2020 and now five-time gold medal winner Paralympian, Ms Yip Pin Xiu on her award today.
11. Thank you very much. Sir, I beg to move.