Promotion of Sea Sports amongst Youths

46 Ms Tin Pei Ling asked the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth given that Singapore is surrounded by sea and our aspirations towards being a sporting nation, (a) what is being done to encourage sea sports, such as ocean paddling; (b) whether there is sufficient space to support such sports; and (c) whether there are plans to drive a higher adoption rate of sea sports, especially amongst youths.

Mr Edwin Tong Chun Fai: MCCY works with a variety of stakeholders to provide opportunities for Singaporeans of all ages to participate in sea sports. These efforts include the promotion of open water sports, such as sailing, canoeing and dragon boating.

There are many programmes across multiple locations that encourage Singaporeans, especially our youths, to try out and pursue various open water sports.

SportSG runs the ActiveSG Canoe Academy (ACA), which offers programmes for children and youths to pick up paddling skills in a fun and safe learning environment. ACA works closely with the Singapore Canoe Federation (SCF) to develop those with potential to become athletes and represent Singapore, and support their development journey towards high performance.

During the school holidays, students can sign up for ActiveSG School Holiday Programmes, which include water sports, such as snorkelling and scuba diving.

National Sports Associations (NSAs) in charge of open water sports also run programmes to encourage broad-based participation in their sport. For example, the Singapore Sailing Federation organises Learn To Sail programmes to teach sailing to children as young as seven years old. The Singapore Dragon Boat Association holds their Dragon Boat Orientation Programme at Kallang Water Sports Centre, where experienced trainers and steerspersons guide interested members of the public to try out the sport.

At Outward Bound Singapore (OBS), participants take part in open water activities like kayaking and sailing, as part of outdoor adventure education for youth development. These activities regularly spark interest in some participants to pursue open water sports further through the activities organised by SportSG and the respective NSAs.

With its six PAssion Wave outlets located at various reservoirs and parks, the People's Association (PA) offers a variety of open water sports programmes for Singaporeans of all ages, including dragon boating, kayaking, sailing, windsurfing and stand-up paddling.

As these open water and sea sports are held at various existing and new water sports centres all across our island, including at our northern and eastern coasts as well as at our reservoirs inland, we have plenty of space for all these activities. We will continue to explore suitable venues for open water and sea sports activities.

For instance, as part of the Punggol Eco-Town, SportSG is working with various Government stakeholders, through the Punggol Eco-Town Working Committee, to design Punggol Waterway into an Integrated Adventure Hub for Water Sports and Water-based Lifestyle Activities.

The Government will continue to support efforts that promote Singaporeans’ participation in open water and sea sports.