More on that 100m Butterfly Final....

These photos came from my own digital camera taken off my TV screen as it happened.

They show the medal presentation ceremony. The Olympic medals were presented to the 3 deserving winners by Ng Ser Miang, Singapore's top IOC official.

Bronze, Silver and finally Gold!

I read the hundreds of remarks and comments on AsiaOne Forum page online regarding Tao Li's remarkable achievements in this same Final. She had finished 5th ,making her the best top 5 swimmers in the world for this event.

Many who commented praised and saluted her. But there are those who continually "rubbed " it into her and our Sg sports people that her achievement, per se S'pore,...leaves little to crow about.

Many of these unhappy people are quite, quite mistaken in their simplistic reasoning. Perhap, they are too inflexible in their world views or have not kept up with the times. We are now in a fast moving, globalised world where many, many nations have opened up their country, with wide open arms, to welcome talent in diverse fields....not only sports. To continually harp on the fact of her past history does great injustice to Tao Li and others like her. She and her family came willingly to our country....NOT AS A TOP CHAMPION in SWIMMING yet. Just one of the hundreds of kids in China who have some talent.

She was moulded here over many years, trained and groomed by our coaches. Many have tried and many have failed, whether from S'pore or China. Only those with the GUTS, PASSION and an -all CONQUERING SPIRIT never quit...despite many failures and setbacks, and unappreciative remarks from a small section of disgruntled public.

That requires loads of RAW COURAGE.

It is different if we were to pay say

$10 million to a former or current foreign world champion to represent us in a sport...hoping for instant Glory.

Then I say it it dumb and I will join in the bandwagon of protest too.

Clearly, Tao Li and others like Li Jiawei, Ronald Susilo and Tang Juihong came here, had to work extremely hard to be where they are today.

No short cut!

ps: Ng Ser Miang presenting the Gold Medal to Libby Trickett the Olympic Champion.

SINGAPORE SWIMMER makes HISTORY !

This morning at about 10.45 am in Beijing at the Olympics Swimming Finals for the 100 metres Butterfly event for women, Singapore Top Swimmer....TAO LI swam against the world's best and achieved 5th placing.

We would all do well to remember her for this history-making moment!

No other Singaporean has ever made it to an Olympic Swimming Final...she is the 1st one ever! Even the great Ang Peng Siong, someone I know, had not been able to accomplish this feat.

I was watching the Finals "Live" from my home and got my digital camera ready to capture these shots. They are not too sharp but did the job of capturing the moments before, during and after the race.

Well, what can I say ? What can we all say?

I say we all stand up and SALUTE to this new heroine of Singapore swimming by the name of TAO LI.

Though she did not appear among the medal winners, she has put SINGAPORE swimming on the World map! She has brought instant recognition and fame to our tiny island ! And she has a Great future ahead of her, being only 18 this year.

Another thing, my friends from Wuhan and China would also be glad to note that TAO LI was born and bred in WUHAN, Hubei Province....before making home in S'pore.

Give her another couple of years and with the very best coaches available to her...she would be standing on the podium of the winners at the next Olympics, for sure!

Tao Li is in Lane 5 in the picture.

The full Results.