Note:
If you are keen and have queries, please contact Coach Rameshon at 9100 4369 or you can email him at m.rameshon@gmail.com or swift.rameshon@gmail.com. Please refer to website http://flexifitness.com.sg (for more information on him and his programmes)
By Rameshon
Bsc (Hons) Degree in Physical Education, Loughborough University (1992-1994)
Masters in Education (University of Western Australia, 2005-2008)
Oon Shui Kun - A dynamic athlete who can win future SEA Games medal.
CCA includes Canoeing, Running, Health and Fitness, Track and Field Club.
Picture 1 - On the left of the photo - (Oon Shui Kun, an admirable athlete who has the guts, determination, fearlessness and above all resilience in demonstrating these values during a competition. He is a good role model student as well).
There are many runners in Singapore who are young and have the talent to win medals in the SEA Games of the future. One such person who has the possibility to do this is Oon Shui Kun, a year 2 student of Hwa Chong Institution (College).
As a year 2 student, he joined the cross-country team for a once a week running training. He joined us only for the quality run. Over a period of time, I realised that he was as good as Jeevanesh in workouts. He made significant improvements, in leaps and bound, in his running. The group that was training with us saw Shui Kun's awe-inspiring progress and started showing great respect to this athlete. Even Jeevanesh admired the way Shui Kun ran and wrote an article in the Hwa Chong Cross-Country blog about the latter's courage.
Picture 2 - Looks like Shui Kun's love for speed can be seen by his presence in the F1 race as a spectator.
Another important thing that I realised about the two runners, Jeevanesh and Oon Shui Kun, was that these two athletes are more talented than me. Hence, there is a necessity to develop them to do well for Singapore in the future. They could be given small exposures to compete in other countries. The focus should be on developmental and should be process-oriented rather than the outcome-based. In the book on Periodisation, Tudor Bomba, the Father of Periodisation in Sports, states that those who break the national age-group records at an early have a high chance of giving up the sports in the long run. It is something that we need to reflect on.
When we see elite athletes, the most important thing to do is to recognise the talent. Then, comes the support part. If there is no or less support, it will end up as how I gave up running at a young age of 29 years of age, instead of 35 years old, a pre-mature retirement. Long-distance runners can retire at the age of 37 to 40, actually. Carlos Lopes, from Portugal, won the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics marathon race at the age of 37, not to forget. In that marathon race, he beat favourites like Toshihiko Seko, the Japanese former world record holder for the marathon, Rob de Castella from Australia and America's Alberto Salazar, the 1980,1981 and 1982 New York City marathon race champion. Carlos Lopes also broke the Olympic marathon record at that age at that time in a time of 2hrs 09min 26sec.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DUNCBJwhj0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DUNCBJwhj0
Having said that, I would like to introduce this fine young gentleman who has a great talent to do wonders for Singapore if he is groomed over time. With just 12 sessions intensity training, he could get a gold medal for the canoe team in the National School's Canoe Competition and third individual in the 5000m race. It was very tough balancing canoeing, running and studying and I like the courage, determination and willpower of this young man.
Picture 3 - Oon Shui Kun, at the extreme right of the photo, had a very tough time balancing doing workout of canoeing and running at the last stage before the national schools' cross-country and track and field competition. In words of his canoe teacher-in-charge, Mr Quek Wee Tong says, "This boy can rebound," shows the spirit of Shui Kun in competitions.
5km - 17min 03sec on National Schools' Track and Field race and 16min 18sec on a tarmac track. I seldom run races.
What was your ranking in the canoe team today?
Based on time trial timings, I am ranked 2nd in the canoeing team.
How did you fare in this year's 5000m national schools' track and field meet?
For 5000m, I finished 3rd with a time of 17min 03sec.
How did you feel when you run in the 5km race?
As it was my first time participating in the event, I was relatively inexperienced compared to the rest of the field, hence I adopted a less aggressive approach to the 5000m race that allowed me to attain a satisfactory 3rd placing.
It took me about 3 months to train for this 5000m race. During this time, I juggled between canoeing and running. On a certain day, I would go for a running workout early in the morning before attending canoeing training at 7am. It was a tough period for me. Looking back, I had minimum training in running. I could have done much better in 5000m if I have more training sessions.
How did your parents feel when you did well in the 5000m race?
They were proud and happy for me. Most of all, they were relieved that my efforts finally paid off.
Can you tell us more about the National School's Canoe competition 2010? What was your individual and team position?
In the national school's canoeing championships, Hwa Chong was the underdog as we had not won any championships in the recent past. Despite this, our team drew on unwavering teamwork and belief to beat close rivals ACS(I) and SAJC to win the title. Individually, I finished 4th in 2 events. Can you tell us about your personal best 1km time-trial time?
My personal best 1km time-trial time is 2min 29sec, on the road. Jeevanesh's push was helpful for me to attain this time. Sometimes I used to be in front of him and sometimes he is in front of me during the trial.
How do you see yourself when you compare yourself with your school-mate Jeevanesh?
Picture 4- The three courageous athletes (left, middle and on the right is Oon Shui Kun, Gary Tse and S. Jeevanesh, respectively).
Jeevanesh is a very talented athlete with a really strong mentality. I have great respect for him and feel that I have much to learn from him. I am fortunate to have such a strong training partner who can motivate me to hit greater heights.
What are your aspirations in the future?
I would like to improve in the 5km and 10km races and, hopefully, over time, lower the local marathon record set by my coach one day.
How do you balance your studies since I have seen you very heavily involved in sports? I also realise that you are good in studies.
With such heavy involvement in sports and having to cope with studies at the same time, I realised time is not a luxury for me. Thus, I make use of whatever free time I have to rest and complete my school work. It would be a great idea to have a good friend who can help you out in your schoolwork as well. I also would like to appreciate my parents, teachers, friends and those who have helped me in one way or another to attain my goals. A big thank you to them.
Picture 5 - Mr Quek Wee Tong, canoe teacher-in-charge and an avid marathon runner, who likes running, who also has a personal best time of 3hrs 40mins for 42.195km marathon race.
Note:
By Narayanan
Rameshon has taught in Hwa Chong Institution, plus several schools, and Republic Polytechnic as well. He has won many accolades and he was awarded Merit Award for 1991 marathon performance in breaking the national record of Singapore, at that time. He has made 22 male athletes do a marathon in sub-3hrs. He has made 7 female runners do sub-4 hours for the marathon, as well. He was inducted to the ‘Roll of Honour’ by the then College of Physical Education, organised by Singapore Olympic Academy, in 1998, for breaking the National record repeatedly 4 times, till he did 2hr 24min 22sec).
He also has a Coaching group and he trains them on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7pm at Botanic Gardens. Those interested can call him at 91004369 for coaching assistance, to improve performance. There is also personal training that he does for many in a week. You can e-mail him at swift.rameshon@gmail.com.
