AFTER 22 days of hot, dry weather with nary a drop of rain falling on Singapore, it had to pour on Saturday, Feb 8, which just happened to be Club ZOOM’s Family Day. In truth, however, the rain was more a boon than it was a bane. Yes, the outdoor tables and chairs had to be hurriedly moved into the shade when the skies suddenly and unexpectedly opened. But for the first time in weeks, the heat haze cleared and temperatures became tolerable again – a welcome change – and just in time for our outdoor barbeque party at Republic Polytechnic.
It had been a much- anticipated event for members, being the Club’s first social event of the 2014, and with the festive spirit of the Lunar New Year still very much in the air. But also, it was a special occasion where seven guests from Johor’s Quantum Athletics Club led by Coach Ali, a long-time friend of Coach Tan, had been invited for a day’s joint programme.
The programme comprised combined training with ZOOM athletes in the morning, a technical seminar in the afternoon, and culminating in the makan session in the evening. The seminar featured presentations on the finer points of sprinting technique by ZOOM’s Coach Tan, fresh from his IAAF Level 5 course in the US, and sports nutrition pointers by Quantum’s Ms Durrah Ramli. Hungry from all this hard physical and mental work, there was no way that a little moisture at makan time could dampen anyone’s mood!
As soon as the rain stopped, the group of athlete parents, who had graciously contributed all the food for the party, swung into action. The fire was started and they kindly undertook the smoky and oily business of barbequeing the satay, sausages, chicken wings and other foodstuff upon themselves, leaving everyone else to just munch and mingle.
So a big “thank you” is due to all you athlete mums – Sabariah Md Zain, Doris Chew, Ismarina Ismail and Tan Din Lua – for the great food and selfless service that helped make the Family Day such an enjoyable experience for everyone.
And sweet it was for everyone, as club athlete Rabi Kumar pointed out: “We had a tough training session earlier but we ended the day with a barbecue party where everyone had a jolly time and ate to our hearts’ desire.”
Reflecting on the day, Club Secretary Tan Chin Keong, or “CK”, as he is better known, said: “I felt that the collaboration between our two clubs from two countries had a good start. We were able to interact well with the coaches and athletes.
“The Quantum athletes are well-trained and friendly. Although some of them were not so fluent in English, they did not show any disinterest during the talks. They tried to interact with us despite our communication challenges.
“With everyone working together – from the Quantum athletes’ waking at 6am in Johor to arrive here in time for training, to the efforts of the parents setting up the barbeque – it turned out to be quite a harmonious day in the end.”
Indeed, from the many willing hands who minded Coach Tan’s twin toddlers, togged in yellow tops, to the new-found, shutter-happy camaraderie with the guests from Malaysia, to the lusty cheers of “huat ah” that reverberated the halls of RP as everyone tossed the traditional “lo hei” salad to usher a good Year of the Horse for Club ZOOM, the atmosphere at the gathering was decidedly “family”.
As Club member Tan Han Cheng observed, this is what distinguishes Club ZOOM. And he credits the President for having laid the groundwork for this to happen.
“I like participating in sports for fitness, but more so, to value friendships and teamwork,” said Han Cheng.
“Coach Tan is a fun, caring and family type of guy who values human bonds, as shown through activities that he has initiated for members like this barbeque and his kids’ first-year birthday party. This makes our Club different from others, which usually only focus on training. One must realize that not all coaches are this friendly and value human relationships. I would say he is one in a million.”
And so, despite the downpour – or perhaps because of it – the air was thick with infectious goodwill and optimism for the Club. As Rabi put it: “With the Club’s plans in place and new athletes coming in, the future is looking good for the Club Zoom family!”
To that, we can only holler: “Huat ah!”