The Cycling Challenge 2011

I have broken my own record! I actually cycled twenty kilometres and completed the Cycling Challenge!



Of course, that is not without upheavals. At the speed I was cycling, someone could walk slowly and overtake me! I cycled non-stop the whole stretch from the starting point all the way to the middle part of the beach (which is estimated to be ten kilometres). By the time I reached there, my legs felt like dropping off already!



I stayed resting at the beach, until the ushers came and chased me off, saying they would need to re-open the road. So I hopped on my bicycle and started out again, this time cycling slower than before because my legs are just so sore!



Who was to know I was the last in line? When I saw traffic wardens and police escorts behind me, I knew everyone else must have reached the destination, or at least far ahead, and I still have a long long way to go!



When I was almost at my destination, I could not take it anymore. I had to stop for a break, but the traffic wardens behind me kept pushing me. Finally they put me on a van, put my bicycle on a truck and then sped me off to the end of the destination! Well.. if they could give me another half hour to an hour, I could definitely make it back there on my own!



In any case, since I completed the challenge, I got my medal!

It was a sense of achievement indeed! The only gripe is that, this being a fun event, why must people make it so competitive and expect everyone to be just as good and fast? I hope the word "fun" means "fun" and not "competition"! Now I am just so tired out that I feel like zonking out the rest of the day!

My Own "Transformer"...

I just got a foldable bicycle, perfect for the Cycling Challenge next month! Foldable bicycles are so convenient because we can just fold them up and bring onto public transport, including the bus and train, and when we need to use, we just open them up again.

The one I got is a bit big though, I would much prefer it if it is a smaller one then will be lighter. As it is, the body frame is a bit heavy, although I am still able to carry it in one hand when it is folded up.

Some people may ask how foldable bicycles work? It is actually like Transformers, when those vehicles transform into robots. This is the step-by-step guide to how to close and open a foldable bicycle :

The bicycle when it is fully folded up

Step 1 : Pull the two wheels apart so one is in front and the other behind, separating only by the main frame.

Step 2 : After separating the wheels, from the main body (the one attaching to the wheels), pull up and lock this bolt into place. Turn the bolt to the left and catch it into the little hole at the side until it is locked firmly.

Step 3 : Once the body is locked firmly in place, lift up the handle. Ensure the two black strings are facing the front and grip the handle bar tightly.

Step 4 : Once the handle bar is lifted up and gripped tightly, pull down this handle lock and ensure it catches. This is to prevent the handle from moving too much while cycling.

Voila! The "completed" bicycle!

My New Sneakers ....

I was doing some window shopping after lunch, when I saw sales on shoes and sneakers at the atrium of the shopping mall opposite my office building. My sneakers have been worn out since we went ghost hunting last year, so I have been looking for new sneakers since then.

Sneakers is an essential feet item (besides ankle straps, sandals, flip-flops and ballet flats), especially if I plan to go travelling, those seem to be the most comfortable pair of shoes ever (besides the Timberland suede boots), and if I ever get in the mood of going running or other form of sports.

So my colleague and I took a look at the sale items, and I saw such nice pair of sneakers, at incredible prices! It cost less than S$20.00 a pair, which is a very big deal because most sneakers average around S$50.00 a pair (and that is after discount as well), to the original price of around S$100.00 or even S$200.00 for a very good brand.

When I saw a pair I like and have my size, I tried it on and it fits me perfectly! Now I have a new pair of sneakers which I plan to utilise one way or other. Hopefully it will not wear out so fast!

My new sneakers. Beautiful pair, is it not?

A Morning Jog

Today is the first time in my life that I actually went jogging in the early hours of the morning. A friend and I went to the jogging track behind my place to do some running, since both of us had to start training for the upcoming Standard Chartered Marathon in December.

It is not an easy feat waking up so early in the morning, especially since I am not a morning person. I already have a problem waking up on time for work, and many a times, my mum had to keep bugging me to wake up.

So I almost could not wake up this morning, but I had already promised my friend, hence I had to wake up. Furthermore, he specially catered to my timing since I had to start work at a fixed time, so the least I could do was to wake up early to jog for half an hour or so.

One round the track is four hundred and twenty metres. In order to run 2.4 kilometres, it would be six rounds round the track. I surprised myself by actually being able to run two and a half rounds (equivalent to one kilometre), before having had to walk. Then I walked the next few rounds before running the final lap.

What is surprising is that I did not even feel tired after that! Seems like an early morning jog does wonders to one's system - I felt so energetic and alert instead of tired and lethargic for the rest of the day. It could have been due to the fresh air!

My friend and I are thinking of jogging on a regular basis from now on. Hopefully I can keep this up and actually slim down for once!

My First Jog

I have not run in years. In fact, I have never run unless forced by my teachers during Physical Exercise lessons back in school. Other than that, I do not make it a point to jog or run around the neighbourhood.

For some reason, when I was in my early twenties, I told myself I should start jogging around the neighbourhood. But the lazy procrastinator that I am, I never did do that, and so, all the way until now, so many years later, I still have not found the motivation or inclination to run, reason being I really hate running. I prefer other forms of sports like tennis and cycling, but not running.

However, ever since I have been putting on weight last year and have been finding it hard to shed no matter how little I eat or how much I walk, I thought I better do something drastic before it is too late.

Just when I thought how to go about doing it, a friend I was meeting for dinner last night suggested meeting earlier for a job. Turns out that she, too, will be running for the Standard Chartered Marathon and been wanting to train up her running. Since I have company, I decided to have a jog too. Just as well she stays near me, so we can meet up more often to go jogging!

So we jogged from the train station to the park opposite, all the way to near East Coast, before making a turn and going for dinner. Put it this way, she was jogging throughout whereas I had to start walking halfway through as could not job anymore. We had a good dinner, then walked all the way back home. I was perspiring like mad by the time I reached home.

Initially I thought I would be so tired that I would just crash out, but surprisingly I was full of energy that I could even stay up a bit. I was actually more energetic than the other days when I did not exercise.

Maybe I should start jogging more often from now on, and see if I can finally lose weight for once!

The Handball Game

I have never heard of handball until I started helping out at the games. I was very curious to see what the handball game was like, so when I found out I was doing the media stand on the first day of the handball games, I was quite excited.

As I watched the games, I figured the handball is like a variation of the volleyball, basketball and football (soccer). It was played in an indoor court, had goalposts like soccer, and yet you hit the ball like a volleyball. In other words, it is a hand soccer.

You pass the ball from one to another using your hands instead of kicking it around and you throw the ball into the net where the goalkeeper will try to block or hit it out, instead of kicking it out.

Cool! One learns something new everyday! This seems like a very interesting sport indeed! I only wonder if we have a girls' handball team here since there only seems to be the boys' team representing the country?

Different Types Of Fencing

Now I am hooked onto fencing! I have been fascinated with fencing for a while now, as it is only gaining in popularity in recent years, with the setting up of fencing schools and fencing being a co-curricular activity in schools nowadays.

However, I am only really hooked after the recent games. I thought fencing is just using the sword-like thing to fight, but now I know there are three kinds of fencing - epee fencing, foil fencing and sabre fencing.

What is the difference between these three? Besides the difference in the weight of the weapons, the attack areas are different too. For Epee Fencing (apparently the most popular here if I am not mistaken), the weapon is the heaviest, and the target area is the entire body. Double touches are allowed and there is no "right of the way". In other words, any of the two can just thrust and poke anywhere and everywhere (okay, that sounds a bit wrong, but I guess you do get the picture).

For Foil Fencing, the weapon is the lightest, and the target areas are restricted to just the torso, chest, shoulders and back. No double touches are allowed, and foil fencing follows the "right of the way".

For Sabre Fencing, it is also a light weapon for thrusting and cutting, and the target areas are the saddle line and head. There is also the "right of the way". Interesting!

My dear have also indicated that he would like to take up fencing too, so this can be done in the future, after we are done with whatever things we have on our hands!

Are Local Sports Personnel Not As Good As Foreigners?

My short stint volunteering for the recent inaugural Youth Olympics made me think : why is it that our local sportsmen can never compete internationally? Is it due to our limited pool of talent, or is it due to the fact that we just do not care about sports?

Times are changing. During my time, parents wanted their children to excel in their studies and not other things. Hence, even though the child could do a certain sport very well, or play a certain instrument very well, parents would stop them and made them concentrate on their studies instead, go to university and get a good job. Sports and music were frowned upon.

But it is changing. Kids are getting more and more all-rounded, excelling in studies, sports and music. A few years back, the sports school was set up, to groom all the young athletes around. Kids who are good in sports can now have a career in them since young.

Yet as compared to the international arena, somehow our own sportsmen are still not on par. What is the best here? He or she may be nothing internationally, which is a very sad thing.

Are we really not as good? I do not think so. Judging from the capability and power of so many people here, I daresay we are just as good, if not better, than many other people. I guess because sports is still a relatively new area, our locals still need more time and experience so they can be confident and not crumble under pressure.

That is why the Youth Olympics is such a good experience and exposure. Maybe give them another few years, perhaps by then, a born and bred local can clinch a gold medal at another major sports event, instead of relying on foreign talent.

End Of The Olympics

Today was the last of the games, and tomorrow will be the closing ceremony of the inaugural Youth Olympics. I feel as if everything was so fast. I thought it was just yesterday when I started my duty, and now everything was ended. Not to mention I was sick half the time, and my cough is taking forever to go away.

Today being the last day, I was asked to go to the Press Conference room for a debrief. There was nothing much to debrief anyway, since I was either stuck at the Media Helpdesk or the Media Workroom the past few days, and today I was at the Media Helpdesk again.

Anyway, the debrief was just to thank us volunteers for our time and the effort and commitment we put in. We received a signed Certificate of Appreciation as well as a letter to thank us. We also received a momento - a limited edition badge / pin of the inaugural Youth Olympics. And of course, we received our ticket to the party at our own Universal Studios in September!

The limited edition badge / pin

Now that everything is over, I kind of miss it. It has been fun volunteering for such an event. I only wish I was in a clean bill of health to thoroughly enjoy it. This could be the start of a series of volunteering for events! Maybe next time round I may want to volunteer for the Formula One night races!

I am going to miss the games, and it has been fun and enriching being so up close and personal with how the media works and some of the athletes. Now it is back to my normal life, but this will be a good thing to share with my children and grandchildren in the future!

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The Media Workroom

Unfortunately, I did not get back to the Media Stands when I reported back for duty yesterday. Instead, I was asked to go to the Media Workroom - the place where reporters go to compile and do their reports. I had to compile the data of the competitors and the results of the games.

I was not there for long though. Around half past eight, I was asked to go back to the Media Helpdesk again. And that was how I spend my time at my duty yesterday. Hopefully today will be better!

The Media Helpdesk

In my shift earlier, I was posted to the Media Helpdesk. It was unfortunate indeed, as being at the Media Helpdesk means I would not get to watch any games. I would be at the booth outside the hall, helping the media people with their queries, collating results, data, players, and helping photographers with the exchange of their vests.

I guess there were enough people in the hall, hence I was asked to go to the Media Helpdesk. But luckily I was not too bored, since I had my dear for company, as he had been at the Media Helpdesk since the beginning. Since we were only manning the booth and entertaining requests as and when, we were generally free to do as we please. So we could chat, check emails and even read.

At least tonight's duty was not too intensive. Hopefully when tomorrow comes, I would be back at the Media Stands with the reporters and watching the games!

Back To The Olympics

After a break of two days, I went back to my shift again for the Youth Olympics. The fencing match is over, today was the start of the handball matches. Since I was on the afternoon to evening shift, I got to see two male teams as two female teams had their matches in the morning and early afternoon.

The earlier match for handball was South Korea vs Cook Islands. Pardon the photos, as they were taken from quite a far range. The South Korean Handball team consist of all the tall men! The goalkeeper himself is a colossal 1.92 metres tall! On the contrast, the Cook Island Handball team look like midgets.

Cook Island Handball Team

The two teams

The South Korean Handball team

Before the match started, the Cook Island team performed their Maori war dance. Cook Island is actually under the New Zealand administration, so there are quite a number of Maoris, hence the Maori war dance. The match started precisely at six, and just fifteen minutes into the match, we could see that the South Korean team was gaining as the players were rather aggressive.

I went for dinner after that and by the time I came back, the match was almost over. Finally, the South Korean team won 70-4 against the Cook Islands. Each handball match is supposed to last for one and a half hours, so the match ended promptly at 7:30pm, with the Cook Island team being thrashed.

The next match started at 8:00pm, between Brazil and Singapore.

The Singapore and Brazilian Handball Team

The Singapore Handball Team

The Brazilian Handball Team

On the playing field

Brazilians on the playing field

I must say, our local boys did a pretty good job! They really tried their best, especially the main goalkeeper, who tried ways and means to block the ball. He used his hands, his legs, his body, even his tummy. Around the end of the game, the ball collided with his tummy, and he was reeling in pain on the field. The other goalkeeper took over, but by then, the Brazilians were leading a lot.

In the end, the Brazilians won 53 to 7. Not too bad! At the end of the match, we had to go to the media mixed zone to coordinate the reporters and broadcasters from interviewing the players. The whole thing wrapped up around 9:30pm and we could go off after that.

What a day! First the Social Mission Conference, then being able to watch two games! It is good to be a volunteer!

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Fourth Day Of The Youth Olympics

Today my shift started early, so I had to rush down after work. It was the last of the fencing matches. Yesterday the individual matches concluded, today was the team matches. Vying for third place was the Asia team vs America team. The Asia team consisted of fencers from Singapore, China and Korea, whereas the America team consisted of fencers from United States of America and Canada.

It was an intense match. The first two fencers were Koreans, and they managed to lead the Americans. Then the third fencer was a local fencer. She was thrashed by a Canadian, poor thing! After that the other fencers tried their best, but in the end, the Asia team lost by a few points to the America team, with the latter clinching third place.

Next up was the Europe Team 1 (consisting of Italians and Russians) vs Europe Team 2 (consisting of Germans, Polish and Russians), with the former team emerging as champions. When the matches ended, the press came to interview them. At this time, I had to go press the elevator as the teams would be led down after the victory ceremony to the Press Conference.

The Press Conference went without a glitch. Because of the number of nationalities involved, each question was translated into the respective language - German, Russian, Italian, Polish. It was pretty interesting hearing the different language variations of the same thing!

The Press Conference lasted about half an hour. After that, we had to clean up the room, and had some fun taking photos at the press booth, pretending we were being "interviewed"! In the photo I probably look more haggard than usual because I was still sick!

Me at the Press Booth

The whole thing wrapped up earlier than expected today. After that I went to visit a friend who just gave birth. Then it will be two days' break for me before my shift starts again on Saturday!

By the way, regarding the job opportunity that was recommended to me the other day, I was called for an interview tomorrow. Keeping my fingers crossed that all will go well!

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Third Day Of The Youth Olympics

I went back to "work" today. I missed the second day yesterday, where there was the Men's Epee Fencing and the Women's Sabre Fencing. Today was the last of the individual fencing category - the Men's Foil and the Women's Epee Fencing.

The structure today was a bit different. Instead of seeing the matches close-up, I had to stand guard near the entrance at the barricade to prevent unauthorised people from entering the stands. Only the media and press were allowed in.

I did not manage to catch the matches, but the Italian won for the men's category, and the China girl won for the women's category. This time round, the Italian guy seemed rather cocky. He just pushed his way into the stand, despite me telling him he was not allowed to go in. Too bad I was still having an infection, otherwise I could have my firm voice. Instead, today I was barely a squeak.

There was the Volunteers' March today, where the volunteers would stand in a line and go up on stage to bow, while the commentator introduced us. I think I must have appeared quite nervous on stage, since I was still coughing and was trying to stifle my coughs!

Today's shift was pretty smooth nevertheless. We ended around 9:00pm again, and after cleaning up, we could go off. So I went off shortly after that. Tomorrow will be the last of my shift for the first week, then it will be two days break on Thursday and Friday!

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First Day Of The Youth Olympics

I reported for "work" today. My place of duty is at the Mixed Zone - the place where the athletes met the press after the games. The good thing is that I got to see the games close-up for free!

I was assigned to the Fencing event, and today's event was on Men's Sabre and Women's Foil. Because my shift started in the late afternoon, the preliminary rounds were already over, so we got to see the semi-finals and the finals.

The men's semi-finals were South Korea vs Germany and Italy vs Belarus. The South Korea vs Germany match was very exciting, because the tall German guy was leading in the beginning, then after the breather, the short Korean guy suddenly poked and kept poking until he won! When that was over, I had to lead him to the area where the press was waiting to interview him. The poor German rolled miserably on the ground and he was on the verge of tears when interviewed. Because I was standing so close, I could actually snap a picture of the winner, although I should have used a my digicam instead of my phone camera!

The South Korean Fencer

Each fencing match lasted six minutes the most. The next match was Italy vs Belarus, where the cute Italian guy won! Hence the finals would be South Korea vs Italy and Germany vs Belarus would be competing for third place.

The Italian Fencer

Next up were the women's Foil matches. The first match was Italy vs Canada, where the very pretty Italian girl won. Then it was Russia vs Hungary, and the Russian won. So the Italian girl would be competing with the Russian girl in the finals where the Canadian and the Hungarian competing for third place.

The Italian Fencer

I went for my dinner break after that, so missed the matches for the bronze medal, where I heard the German guy and the Hungarian girl won. Luckily, I came back on time to witness the finals.

It was an exciting moment when the South Korean defended with all his might and won the Italian for the first place. When the Italian and Russian girls were sparring, it was also an exciting moment when the Italian won the gold for Women's Foil Fencing. All the reporters then crowded around, but only the broadcast journalists were allowed into the stand, so I had to stop all the "unauthorised" personnel from going in.

The victory ceremony was held ten minutes later. I must really hand it to the athletes that they could shower, change and dry themselves in just a short time, and appear at the stand to take their medals. Each guy was given the Lyo mascot and each girl was given Merly.

When the respective winners took their stand, the national anthem of the champion was played and the flags raised. A silent moment was then observed as everyone looked at the raising flags while the respective national anthem was being played.

Champion for the Men's Sabre Fencing - South Korea (middle),
followed by Italy (left) and Germany (right)

Champion for the Women's Foil Fencing - Italy (middle),
followed by Russia (left) and Hungary (right)

After the victory ceremony, we had to clean up the area. Then we went down for a break / supper, and after that, everything wrapped up and we could go. My shift was supposed to end at 10:30pm, but we could go around 9:00pm. I went back immediately as I was feeling unwell and needed to go back to rest.

All in all, it was an exciting first day. I am so looking forward to tomorrow, hopefully it will be just as exciting!

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The Coming Of The Olympic Flame

Last Sunday (8 August), I actually got to witness the relay of the Olympic flame. The flame had been lit in Greece and travelled around the world before finally landing in our shores. I saw a lot of people crowding around a pedestrian bridge, so went to take a look out of curiosity. It was really the right time, as just when I went to take a look, there were lots of cheering and people driving by, cycling by and running by, marking the start of the torch relay.

Even though it was for just a short while, still it was a rather glorious moment, as this is the inaugural Youth Olympics, and my country won the bid to host it first! What amazes me is that the flame could go round and yet not flicker! After the training today, I cannot wait for the actual shift to start tomorrow! Hopefully my body will let up soon!

Venue Training Exercise

Despite the light-headedness and slower speed, I had to attend the full-dress rehearsal aka Venue Exercise today. The opening ceremony is tonight and my shift starts tomorrow so we had to familiarize ourselves with the shopping mall-cum-convention centre which I was posted to.

We spent the day being briefed and taken to the various workstations, the entrances and exits. I have been coming to this shopping mall quite often and attended the various exhibitions here, but I never knew all those areas even existed! What an eye-opener!

Because I am sick, I was not able to move around as nimbly as the rest. While they rushed through the place, I was lagging behind. Still I managed to make my way around.

Thank goodness I went for the Venue Exercise! I was contemplating to just rest at home as I was feeling really groggy but if I did not go for this, I would not be able to understand what was going on. My shift starts tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully all goes well!

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Collection Of Uniforms

I am still having runny nose. Why am I taking so long to recover this time? I was out sick yesterday and went back to work today.

After work, we went to the Youth Olympic Office to collect our passes and uniforms. The pass is quite big, with my picture, name, role and accessibility venues.

We were given two polo T-shirts, Crocodile brand. There is the Crocodile logo at the side, with the Youth Olympic logo at the other side. The T-shirts are purple in colour.

We were given one pair of pants, khaki colour. Apparently we can wear our own pants but has to be at least knee-length and khaki or similar colour.

We also took our prepaid card for transport. There were other things in the kit like a tube of sunscreen, a Giordano Khaki voucher and even a Crocodile cap!

So now that we are all kitted out, we only need to sit back and await the actual day, which will happen in less than two weeks. Can hardly wait!

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From Training To Cycling

A few weeks back, I received an email asking me to go for venue training for the upcoming Youth Olympics which I will be volunteering for. The training would be on 31 July and I replied that I would be attending.

Shortly after that, I received a notification from the web portal asking us to go for another training on the 24 July (which was today), and we had to reply via the web portal. The notification claimed the training was compulsory so I clicked on "Yes".

This morning when I went to the venue where the training was held, it turned out for some reason, our names were not in the list. Then we were told that we were not supposed to go for this training at all because it would nor be the venue we would be based at!

Then why on earth was the notification sent out? Could whoever it was not check properly instead of sending out a mass notification like that?

In the end we went off since we were not required to stay. Turns out that the first email was the actual one - our training would be on 31 July (next Saturday).

At least the day was not completely wasted. Since we were near the beach, we rented bicycles and went cycling in the end. So we still had fun!

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End Of World Cup

Kudos to the octopus for predicting correctly! The octopus had beaten our parakeet as the best oracle around, much to the chagrin of Germany and Netherlands fans who claim they want it cooked and eaten.

In my humble opinion, it is just a game! Why so drastic to start cursing and swearing and killing? Or maybe I can never understand how men feel about soccer, just like men cam never understand how women feel about shopping and fashion.

Still I am glad the World Cup is over. At least life can get back to normal! No more being woken up by late nights cursing and shouting!

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