yertle-the-turtle
ONE love, blood, life
In Singapore we have a scheme called the 'Foreign Talent Scheme'. Bascially we source other countries (usually China and Indonesia) for young talent, bring them over here, fast-track their citizenship and put them in our national teams.
It's been an effective process; we've come closest to our first Olympic medals for 40 years thanks to some China-born table-tennis players, but there's been loads of public outcry over the scheme. Ironically, the first and only Olympic medal, in weightlifting, was won in Rome in 1964 by a Malaysian representing Singapore.
It's important to realise that Singapore is an immigrant society, and that quite a few of these athletes have lived for an amazingly long period here. For instance, there's Dan Bennett, a Liverpool-born football defender who came to Singapore when he was three and studied at the International School here, who is now a citizen and plays for the national team. However, there are others who've only been here for two or three years and representing the nation, and as such, quite a few people have felt very uneasy over the whole situation. It must be reminded that unlike Qatar, which has a similar scheme, the athlete has to come and train in Singapore first.
To what extent do you think it's necessary for an athlete to represent his country of birth rather than his country of residence? If he truly feels for Singapore, as these foreign-born athletes claim they do, is this good enough? Is the scheme inherently limiting to local players, or is the spin-off in terms of quality and experience ultimately beneficial?
It's been an effective process; we've come closest to our first Olympic medals for 40 years thanks to some China-born table-tennis players, but there's been loads of public outcry over the scheme. Ironically, the first and only Olympic medal, in weightlifting, was won in Rome in 1964 by a Malaysian representing Singapore.
It's important to realise that Singapore is an immigrant society, and that quite a few of these athletes have lived for an amazingly long period here. For instance, there's Dan Bennett, a Liverpool-born football defender who came to Singapore when he was three and studied at the International School here, who is now a citizen and plays for the national team. However, there are others who've only been here for two or three years and representing the nation, and as such, quite a few people have felt very uneasy over the whole situation. It must be reminded that unlike Qatar, which has a similar scheme, the athlete has to come and train in Singapore first.
To what extent do you think it's necessary for an athlete to represent his country of birth rather than his country of residence? If he truly feels for Singapore, as these foreign-born athletes claim they do, is this good enough? Is the scheme inherently limiting to local players, or is the spin-off in terms of quality and experience ultimately beneficial?