National Schools Track and Field C’ships – Donovan and Eugenia light up an otherwise gloomy day at the track

Heartiest congratulations to Donovan Chan of Hwa Chong Institution and Eugenia Tan of Singapore Sports School for emerging the sprint king and queen of this year’s National Schools Track and Field Championships.

The two students were the only ones to complete a Double-Double at this year’s meet. They not only won the 100m and 200m in their respective divisions, but also set new records in both events in the process.

There was never a doubt that Eugenia was going to win today’s B Girls 100m final after she had set a new championship record in the blue ribbon event during the heats.

The absence of arch-rival, schoolmate and good friend Shanti Pereira – who withdrew from both the 100m and 200m possibly because of injury – merely meant that a win for Eugenia would be inevitable.

And the 16-year-ols Secondary Four student delivered. In a class of her own, she romped to an easy win in 12.69sec.

Indeed, the close fight took place in the battle for second and third instead. Katong Convent’s Jannah Wong – who set a new B Girls record in the 100m hurdles last week – took the silver in 13.10sec when she pipped Sheryl Tey from Nanyang Girls (13.16sec).

Donovan ended his campaign in this year’s meet even more stylishly – by setting the only record of the day when he blitzed past everyone else to take the A Boys 100m title.

He clocked a very impressive 10.70sec, eclipsing the 10.80sec record set by former national sprinter Poh Seng Song back in 2001 when he was still an Anglo-Chinese Junior College student.

Hwa Chong made it a double in the event when Tan Zong Yang took silver in a very commendable time of 10.92sec. Ezra Toh of Raffles Institution was third in 11.14sec.

So, well done to both Donovan and Eugenia for being the main highlights on an otherwise gloomy afternoon at CCK Stadium.

It was such a pity that it had to rain so heavily today.

Not only did the lightning and thunderstorm cause the programme to be halted for three hours, it also subsequently caused almost everyone to err on the side of caution on the wet track when their races came up.

As a result, many poor times were clocked.

Congratulations too to Hwa Chong for sweeping the Boys A, B and C Division titles.

There was more variety in the title races in the Girls Divisions.

Raffles Institution won the A title, while Cedar Girls took the B crown. Nanyang Girls High were crowned C Division champions.

Yours in sport
Singapore Sports Fan

National Schools Track and Field Championships – Chan Zhi Xuan does it again

Up-and-coming discus thrower Chan Zhi Xuan marked her final year of participation at the National Schools Track and Field Championships in style, and in very much the same manner as she did with the previous editions – by setting a new record in her discipline.

The Anglo-Chinese Junior College student hurled 38.86m in the Girls A Division final at the Choa Chu Kang Stadium to win the gold comfortably, and erase the championship record of 38.60m which she set last year.

It was also the first record of this year’s championships, and was set on the first day of competition.

Zhi Xuan was such a class above her rivals that she finished eight metres ahead of second-placed Nicole Heng of Raffles Institution, who threw 30.80m.

Zhi Xuan will bow out of the National Schools Championships with a rare accomplishment of holding all three Divisional championship records – the A, B and C marks.

The Singapore Sports Fan would like to congratulate Zhi Xuan on her magnificent achievements and hopes to see her eventually going on to represent the country with distinction at the SEA Games. Fingers crossed. IN the meantime, well done, Zhi Xuan.

Two other new records have also been set at this year’s meet.

On Thursday, Nur Izlyn Zaini of the Singapore Sports School made people sit
up and take notice with her blistering run of 12.74sec in the C Division Girls 100m heats. The time is 0.01sec faster than current sprint sensation Shanti Pereira’s 12.75sec record which she set in 2010.

Can Izlyn go even faster in Monday’s semi-finals and in the final on April 10? We wait with bated breath.

The third record was set by pole vaulter Chan Sheng Yao of Hwa Chong Institution today. He cleared a height of 4.64m in the B Division Boys final to shatter the record height of 4.38m which he set last year.

My heartiest congratulations to both of them.

Yours in sport
Singapore Sports Fan

Six more new records set at 2011 National Schools Track and Field C’ships

The report:

This report appeared in today’s edition of Today:

CHIN HUI MAKES HIS MARK

(Today Online, 22 April 2011)

He won the “A” Division boys’ 400m gold medal at the 52nd National Inter School Track & Field Championships 2011 on Wednesday and there was more joy at the finish line for Raffles Institution (Junior College) sprinter Ng Chin Hui.

The 17-year-old broke the meet record of 49.35sec with a time of 48.98sec, becoming the first schoolboy to go under the 49-sec mark (electronic timing). No youngster has clocked a sub-49 since Sandy Hong’s hand-timed 48.80sec in the national schools’ event in 1984.

Chin Hui, who is coached by veteran Loh Chan Pew, beat team-mate Seow Yang Yang (49.54s) and R Avinash (50.71s) of Anglo Chinese Junior College in the final at Choa Chu Kang Stadium.

The youngster was also part of the Raffles Institution quartet that went under the SEA Games qualifying mark of 3min 26.46sec for the 4x400m relay at last month’s SPH Schools Relay. Calvin Khor, Chin Hui, Khong Zhiwei and Yang Yang clocked a time of 3:24.40s to win the gold medal ahead of Anglo-Chinese Junior College (3:28.90) and Anglo-Chinese School International (3:30.50). – LOW LIN FHOONG

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My thoughts:

My heartiest congratulations to Chin Hui for becoming the first schoolboy in 27 years to go under the 49-second mark in the 400m as he set a new National Schools A Division Boys record on Thursday.  It’s a wonderful accomplishment but I also hope that it won’t be another 27 years before this new record is broken.

Chin Hui’s time also erased Raffles Institution teammate Seow Yeong Yang’s record of 49.35sec which he had set in the semi-finals a few days earlier.

Several other new records have been set at this year’s National Schools Track and Field Championships by the following students:

1. Zachary Devaraj (Anglo-Chinese School Independent) who set a new mark of 1min 57.01sec in the A Boys 800m final. The previous record was 1:57.67 by Subaish Rajamanickam of Yishin JC in 2002.

2. Timothee Yap (Hwa Chong Institution) who set a record of 55.19sec in the heats of the A Boys 400m hurdles. The previous mark was 55.98sec set by Shafiq Kashmiri (Victoria JC) in 2002

3. Wong Kai Yuen (HCI) who threw 17.68m in the A Boys shot put final to break the 17.11m mark set by HCI’s Lim Zhuo Yan in 2009

4. Chan Zhi Xuan (Anglo-Chinese JC) who threw 38.60m in the A Girls discus final to break the distance of 35.58m by more than three metres.  If the name sounds familiar, it is because Zhi Xuan broke the B Girls record last year when she was with Cedar Girls. She threw 37.94m then. Zhi Xuan’s achievement was also very noteworthy as the A Girls record was last set by Asha Mane of Yusof Ishak Secondary in 1972. That’s a whopping 39 years ago.

5. Jannah Wong (Katong Convent) currently holds the distinction of being the only athlete to break a record twice at this year’s Championships. She set two records in the B Girls 100m hurdles. Her time of 14.92sec in the semi-finals erased Singapore Sports School student Goh Weining’s time of 15.00sec which was set last year. Jannah then bettered her own mark in the final when she clocked 14.85sec.

This year’s meet also saw Ang Chen Xiang of RI equalling Abdul Hakim Abdul Halim’s A Boys record of 14.46sec.

The Singapore Sports Fan would like to extend his heartiest congratulations to all the record-breakers. Great stuff, guys, and I hope to see you guys continuing to raise the bar in future Championships.

Yours in sport

Singapore Sports Fan