Team Singapore women’s table tennis coach Liu Guodong was reported to have rejected a new two-year contract by the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA).

His last day with the Olympic silver-medal winning women’s team will be on 31 December 2008.

With this turn of event, will his protégé and star player like Feng Tianwei leave as a result? Presently, all the women table tennis players were quoted to have said they would stay.

Presumably, they will be anxious to know who will take over the role as their new table tennis coach, before make any hasty decisions.

According to a report in Today newspaper, STTA chief executive officer Chew Soo Sheng allayed fears that Wang Yuegu, Feng Tianwei and Li will no longer play as a unit for Singapore.

Chew, who assumed the post on October 8, said: “They have all indicated that they will continue representing Singapore and, to the best of my knowledge, there has been no negative reaction to the news (of Liu rejecting a new deal).

“I spoke to Tianwei (on Monday), informing her of Liu’s decision to turn down the new deal. She said she understood and respected his decision.

Coach Liu Guodong was involved in an unpleasant turn of event at the Beijing Olympic Games when a mix-up left Singapore’s top male table tennis player, Gao Ning, without a courtside coach and his resultant collapse in 4 straight games.

The STTA are said to have drawn up a shortlist of six candidates to take over as the national women’s team coach and also looking for a men’s team coach. Local players like of Pang Xuejie and Zena Sim (both from the Singapore Sports School) may also be promoted to beef up the women’s table tennis team.

Let’s hope the core players stay on, supplemented with new talents and coaches who can bring Singapore’s table tennis to greater heights of success.

Read more in Singapore Youth Olympic Games:
1. Commonwealth Youth Games (CYG Pune 2008)
2. World's First Youth Olympic Games 2010

49th National Inter School Track And Field Championships Singapore

At the 49th National Inter School Track and Field Championships in Singapore held up till yesterday, many new records were set during the track and field athletic events held at the Choa Chu Kang Stadium.

The new records that were set at the 49th National Inter School Track and Field Championships are listed below:

Girls' A 100 metres hurdles final
Amanda Tan, Hwa Chong Institution
15.47 sec

Girls' B 100 metres hurdles final
Inez Leong, CHIJ St Nicholas Girls'
Record Timing : 15.42 sec

Girls' C 80 metre hurdles final
Goh Weining, Singapore Sports School
Record Timing: 12.52 sec

Girls' A 400 metre final
Shalom See, National Junior College
Record Timing: 58.65 sec

Girls' B 400 metre final
Piriyah Thirualkarasu, Singapore Sports School
Record Timing: 57.11 (new under 17 record)

Girls' C 400 metre final
Clara Poon, Cedar Girls'
Record Timing: 1:00.04

Boys A 400 metre final
Shalindran Sathiyanesan, Millennia Institute
Record Timing: 49.35 sec

Boys B 400 metre final
Jamie Coates, Singapore Sports School
Record timing: 49.75 sec

Boys C 400 metre final
Ng Chin Hui, Anglo-Chinese School
Record Timing: 51.97 sec

Boys B shot put final
Cai Jia Shen, Hwa Chong Institution
Record distance: 15.74 metre

Singapore Youth Olympic Games blog congratulates all the record setting winners of the 49th National Inter School Track and Field Championships.