Deepest condolences to Joscelin, Leonard and Gerard Yeo

Singapore sport and Singapore swimming was hit by a sad loss yesterday.

Tan Lee Choo, the mother of former Singapore swim queen Joscelin Yeo, ex-national triathlete Gerard Yeo, and former national swimmer and water polo player Leonard Yeo, passed away yesterday from a brain tumour. She was 59.

Tan will be remembered by the Singapore media as Joscelin’s friendly and approachable but also fiercely protective mother during those 14 fantastic years of swimming when Joscelin splashed her way to 40 SEA Games gold medals, broke numerous national and SEA Games records and won two Asian Games bronze medals.

“Are you going to write bad things about Joscelin?” she would ask whenever she was approached for help to arrange interviews with her three-time Sportswoman of the Year daughter who clearly had no love and little time for the media.

It was a question that Tan would ask with a smile, which meant that it was usually said in jest. But it was also her signal to the reporters that she was not someone to be messed around with.

Tan was certainly held in high regard in the local swimming fraternity and no sports reporter will ever forget her clear voice crisply announcing the swimming results from the control room at local swimming meets.     

 I would like to express my condolences and deepest sympathies to the Yeo siblings.

Yours in sport

 Singapore Sports Fan