Family Fun at 1st FAS Junior Football Fiesta
A little drizzle on Saturday morning failed to dampen the spirits of more than 500 kids who turned up for the 1st FAS Junior Football Fiesta to have a great time. And a great time they did have!
The inaugural event, held at the Old Police Academy, kicked off at 8.15 am with the arrival of FAS Deputy President and Mayor of the Central Singapore District, Mr Zainudin Nordin, addressed the participants.
Following the address, Mayor led all kids present in pledging their support for Singapore’s bid to host the 2010 Youth Olympic Games by signing pledges on a banner.
Family support: The Yeap family is firmly behind Singapore's bid to host the 2010 Youth Olympic Games
Amongst the many participants and supporters stood out a particular family, the Yeaps (above) – father Benjamin, mother Gillian and their son, Ian.
The Yeaps, were cheering on their son as he represented Saint Joseph Institution Junior (SJI Jr), a traditional power in football.
With the participating kids potentially being in line to make the team for the first ever Youth Olympic Games, the Yeaps believe that it would be great if their son could make the team and will be supporting their son all the way.
As Gillian explains, “I am still a typical Singapore mother who wants her son to focus on his studies as priority. But Ian is an obedient kid who never compromises his passion for football with his studies. His love for the game convinced me that I should support him in the sport he loves. After all, football is good exercise and allows him to make new friends.
“He was so excited this morning even though he had to wake up early on a Saturday, but when I see all the kids lively and excited here, I realised what it means to them. This is really a great event by the Football Association of Singapore,” adds Gillian.
Benjamin Yeap, added in agreement, “Ultimately, as parents, all we want is for our kid to be happy and have fun. You are young only once so I will support all his activities as long as they are beneficial to him.”
As for Ian, who featured in every game that his school played, hopes to do well in the up-coming Inter-Primary School competition and dreams of playing in the Youth Olympic Games.
He says, “I am still too young to think about being a professional. I like to take things one step at a time. For now, I hope my school can win the Inter-Primary School championships and I can make the first Youth Olympic Games team. My parents are really supporting me in every way and I feel touched.
“This fiesta is really good, I have made a couple of new friends from the other schools and all my team mates are enjoying ourselves. We hope to have more of these fiestas.”
In the end, Ian and his team mates left the event a little short of perfection as they finished as runners-up, losing 1 – 0 in a thrilling final to the kids from Yio Chu Kang Primary School.
