Comeback

10th, 11th & 12th April 2009
ASEAN Cup Swimming meet took place in Singapore Sports School. Individual events : 100m free and 50m fly. Relays: both 4x100m medley (free leg) and 4x100m free relay

Friday:

I was having my individual events 100m free and 50m fly then on the 10th. It wasn't a great one though as i was rather disappointed with myself for not being at my peak, in order to do a Personal Best time.

Saturday:

I was having relay as the only event that i'm having for the whole competition on this day, 4x100m medley relay. It was rather an unlucky day for me. The story goes this way. There is 2 session in each day of the competition and the relays are the last events of each days of Saturday and Sunday. So I reached the Venue at SSS, started my warm up by swimming laps and practising a few starts then followed by resting by my bag or to watch the competition as time passes by. It was 100m fly events right after the interval and so i waited patiently for my relay. I waited and waited and finally the time came.

But, I continued to wait, hearing from people around me saying that there were some technical faulty/difficulty while preparing for the relay. So i waited for the officials to fix it. But after 1hr+, with my 1.5L H-TWO-O and a MARS bar finished, they announced that the relay event will be postponed to the next day, after the 4x100m free relay. I was sort-of depressed. Because i've wasted time there, just to rush down to SSS to warm up and to stone the whole day. I was even looking forward to do a whole new PB time in medley relay for 100m free then followed by the next day with a fresh start, another try for a PB in 4x100m free relay. Then it ended up with 2 events in the same day which i think it's rather hard to set new times consecutively one after the other event in the same day.

Sunday:

Rather a sucky day as it went per normal. i didn't do well for the 100m in 4x100m free relay, but the medley relay result is much better by 1 sec. But it is still quite a pathetic timing as compared to the average timing of what others have at my age.

Later on, we had the farewell dinner for the foreign swimmers who came from other parts of SEA. It was rather fun and i think i enjoyed being with the kids around me at my table. Being with kids really bring joy and fun. I joked with them quite a lot as compared than usual.

There are some real fun time that we had during the farewell dinner. Such as Andrew drinking the disgustingly mixed "Prawn-head chicken soup" whereby the soup itself already smelled funny (maybe it didn't suit my taste),

My table being the messist table as though a war had just engaged and it looks like the aftermath,

My club, The Grassroot Aquatic Club, was encouraged to exchange gifts/"souvenirs" with other clubs from local or foreign, but we were given badges that we, the swimmers, didn't had high hopes in exchanging the badge with some other things like track suit, shirt, or towel or maybe even a puny pen or another different badge. What's funny is that one of the Brunei Junior swimmer came to my table and asked whether we would want to exchange anything. But all we have is a stupid bunch of badges given to each of the TGAC swimmers.

So i offered to exchange 1 badge with this boy wondering what he might offered. But he had a moment to examined what badge am i having but it turns out that he already exchanged with someone with a pen for this badge. But seeing that he had a shirt in his right hand but it was too late to ask him whether i can have that as he had walked off fast to eye on other clubs. I gave the idea to my juniors that since 1 badge = 1 pen, why don't 10 badges = that shirt he's holding? Then my juniors were laughing at the comparison and all sounds like exchanging for prizes with tokens in a Arcade.

The final joke of the day was that supposedly each of the clubs were suppose to perform up on stage for performance, as part of the programme of the dinner. Unfortunately, for these 3 days of competition and even before this meet, we weren't even informed that we are supposed to perform something on the last day. But all spells no wonder there were swimmers reharsing dance in the intervals of the meets in those 3 days. So we had trouble and we actually... ... ... panic. So I gave another idea again, but this time to all the swimmers in TGAC, that we are rushing to the exit at the back once they called our club's name to go up on stage. Majority agreed to it and we waited, trying to chill. So what happens in the end is that the Juniors all rushed for the exit, leaving the senior swimmers infront to stay in their seats after the MC called us. So as the seniors continued to stone in their seats wondering around and dragging time, the MC had no choice but call the other upcoming club to perform instead.

Looking ahead

I was seeking for help for months. From my club-mates to coaches and friends. Time-to-time, seeking for self-improvement. But it was too late for ASEAN cup but it was never too late for future competition. What makes me wanting to carry on striving is that i can't stand seeing my juniors starting to become so much better than me or the ones who are same age but joined swimming later than me to improve so much.

What fears me is only the limited amount of years left for me to be able to swim/train to reach the ultimate goal, at least to qualify for Olympics finals, at the very least, to be the 8th of the finals or being the best, a record-holder. After reflecting on what will happen in the following years is that most likely i'll enter NS in 2011, leaving NS at 2013. Then it's either i continue with University or work right away ( major problem is the money needed to fund my studies ). But hearing advices and consoles for my panics that most swimmers are having peak at the age of 20+. So i was thinking to train hard for this year, 2009, and followed by 2010, 2011, 2013 and so on. By 2013 i'm already 22. By then i've gotta put in alot more effort so as to reach at least nearing or already-world class, but not forgetting the younger aged ones who are catching up and in competition with me.

Furthermore, thinking about personal future in terms of lifelong planning. I hope to be able to be engaged by 20+ too, which makes alot problems. Because it means that i have to work already after NS. But it all seems so messed up that i do not know what to do. That's why i hated Singapore. Wasting 2 precious years in NS, which makes Singaporean guys a big headache and problem in achieving their ultimate goal. I wonder how am i gonna survive this way. I'm not quitting Swimming as long i make it to world standard. One thing for sure, Lifesaving will be a lifetime and i'm not letting go of it even when i start working.