Travelled to London in June 1974
This is one segment of my life which I believe was one of the happiest. The early teen years, between 12 and 16 years of age. I will try to delve into my picture archives to see if I can find the years when we (my brother John and I) were actively swimming at the Swimming Club.
I recall, I was made the Boys Swim Captain as early as 1975, and we competed in the regional meets called the Sanya Samaki Swim meets with other clubs from South East Asia.
We travelled and swam in Penang, Bangkok Thailand, Jakarta Indonesia and Manila Philippines at the end of each calendar year, under the Team Captain of Mr. Henry Chan
In June 1974, my father Geoffrey bought 2 tickets, one for me as a child (below 12 years of age) and one for himself, and we set out to Greece and England. Greece was the choice he chose because he wanted me to understand that Western civilization and the birth of Government was formed in the Greek empire, some 5000 years ago.
Sitting Atop one of the Columns of the Parthenon in Acropolis, Athens, June 1974
We visited the Parthenon in Acropolis, Athens in June 1974. After one week, we went to London England and that is where he took this picture of me at the famous Tower Bridge.
At the Swimming Club with John and my maternal cousins, Angela and Wendy
(Dec 1974)
My parents joined the Singapore Swimming Club around 1972, when I was about 10 years old. My brother John (above) was 7 years old then. Those were really fun times, when we first learned to swim under the legendary coach Mr. Neo Chwee Kok (called the 'Flying Fish', as he represented Singapore under the Federation of Malaya during the 1956 Olympic Games). I was a late entry into the boys swim team, but I recall the other boys and girls game me the nickname 'Tarzan' (I'm not sure why maybe I was rather a devil prankster with a lot of mischief in me). John was given the nickname 'Teddy Bear' and these 2 nicknames stuck with us till we 'retired' from swimming sometime in late 1979.
Bus Pass Photo 1975 (14 years of age)
We had training at least 4 to 5 times a week, most times in the evening, and when school was in the afternoon session, then we went for training in the mornings. On Sundays, we would skip Sunday School (tsk tsk) and go for waterpolo games after our training. The waterpolo games were really rough and a lot of underwater punching and scratching was going on. While this was a boy's tough game, I took it all in my stride, and came out unscathed.
We participated in the inaugural Inter Team meet, where I was one of the 4 captains who led a co-ed team of swimmers one week per month for 12 months. I recall my team was called the Barracuda Bravados and we won the inaugural (first of many) Team Championships. The other captains as I recall were as listed below. I was the weakest swimming captain of the 4, so I was given the first cut of choosing the swimmers for my Barracuda team.
a) Sng Tong Hoe
b) Audrey Tan
c) Khoo Teng Cheong.
1977 Inter Team Swim Meet.
Champions : Barracuda Bravados
Captain : Yours Truly.
I was incredibly proud of that first achievement !
I believe I have the team trophy somewhere in the recesses of my house.
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