Singapore YOG Village wows athletes

Participants showered with treats, including air-conditioned rooms

By Lin Xinyi

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5-star village living

(From left) Village Mayor Teo Ser Luck, Chairman of the Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee Ng Ser Miang, deputy mayor Joscelin Yeo, International Olympic Committee Executive Director for the Olympic Games Gilbert Felli, and deputy mayor C. Kunalan setting off streamers to mark the official opening of the village yesterday. -- PHOTO: SPH-SYOGOC/GEOFFREY PEREIRA

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WHEN Oscar Ooi boarded a taxi with three travel bags yesterday, the driver asked him which country he was heading to.

The national youth handballer was indeed heading to a destination filled with foreign cultures. However, he will not be flying anywhere.

Oscar, 17, was among the first Singaporean athletes to check into the Youth Olympic Village at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) yesterday.

The Republic's handball, football and diving athletes moved into the village hours after it officially opened.

For the next two weeks, the village will be the home away from home for some 5,000 local and foreign Youth Olympic Games athletes and team officials.

And Village Mayor Teo Ser Luck, the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Community Development, Youth and Sports, has already promised athletes a historic experience.

The village boasts a village square - the gathering point for Culture and Education Programme (CEP) activities, retail outlets and a dining hall.

The CEP activities, which include talks with YOG ambassadors such as Chinese diving sensation Guo Jingjing, team-building activities at Pulau Ubin and educational trips to the Marina Barrage, do not start until Friday but they are expected to play a big part in the athletes' YOG experience.

Gilbert Felli, the International Olympic Committee's Executive Director for the Olympic Games, said: 'The world is going to look at (the CEP) to see if it works.

'This will really help us to put the concept together because this is for the future of the youths in the Olympic movement.'

The low level of activity at the village yesterday did little to dampen the mood of the athletes.

Upon their arrival, they were each given a pre-paid transport card and a Samsung smart phone pre-loaded with an application that allows users to receive YOG-related content and services.

South African hockey player Jacinta Jubb, 17, said: 'I was blown away by how much stuff we were given.'

For Nick Fransman, 18, lunch proved to be the highlight of the day.

The variety of food available at the dining hall includes Asian and European cuisine, pasta and seafood, and allowed the Dutch shuttler to try a bit of everything.

But the biggest cheers were reserved for the air-conditioned rooms.

Malaysian swimmer Kevin Lim, 18, said: 'It's amazing. Usually if you stay in a hostel, you won't expect air-conditioning. What I've seen so far has exceeded my expectations.'

More than 1,000 athletes and team officials from more than 100 national olympic committees have already arrived in Singapore.