Wei Soong Toh

Started: He began swimming at age six, and started swimming competitively at age 14. (Athlete, 02 Sep 2021; sportsingapore.gov.sg, 06 Jul 2024; tohweisoong.com, 01 Jan 2024) Reason: He took up the sport as part of his rehabilitation. "I enjoy the freedom I get when I am underwater, being able to move about without obstacle is why I love swimming. Swimming got so entrenched in my lifestyle that it in itself is a way of life. The idea of not swimming is the idea of not going out into the sun - it's impossible." (global.toyota, 14 Feb 2019; bp.com, 01 Jan 2018; myactivesg.com, 07 Dec 2015) Ambition: To compete at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (straitstimes.com, 01 Nov 2023) Milestones: He became the first Para swimmer representing Singapore to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games when he claimed bronze in the men's S7 50m freestyle at the 2018 Games in Gold Coast, QLD, Australia. (SportsDeskOnline, 09 Jan 2023; zaobao.com.sg, 25 Jul 2022) Awards: He was named Singapore's flag bearer for the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (sportsingapore.gov.sg, 06 Jul 2024) In 2022 he received the Sportsman of the Year award at the Singapore Disability Sports Awards. (straitstimes.com, 06 Jul 2022) In 2019 and 2020 he was named Sportsboy of the Year at the Singapore Disability Sports Awards. (straitstimes.com, 06 Jul 2022) He was presented with the Goh Chok Tong Enable Award in 2019. (Mediacorp Facebook page, 11 May 2020) He was a torch bearer at the opening ceremony of the 2015 ASEAN Para Games in Singapore. (straitstimes.com, 04 Dec 2015; insidethegames.biz, 03 Dec 2015) Additional Info: OCCUPATION He has served as an editor for Singaporean fashion magazine ONZ Magazine, and as an editor-in-chief for Ortus Journal, an international journal publishing philosophical essays, short stories and other writings. (tohweisoong.com, 01 Jan 2024) OTHER ACTIVITIES In 2023 he became vice chairperson of the Singapore Para Athletes' Commission [SPAC]. (Singapore National Paralympic Council Facebook page, 27 Jul 2023) BALANCING SPORT AND STUDY He believes that his experience in swimming made him a better university student. "Instead of saying my studies benefited my swimming, I would say it has been swimming that taught me how to study. For example, if I did not train just because I was tired, I wouldn't have achieved anything in sport. I apply this to my studies. I also study what I am good at, which is similar to swimming. Some people may prefer freestyle, butterfly, backstroke, or breaststroke. If you know what you like and what you are good at, everything will be easier." (zaobao.com.sg, 25 Jul 2022)