The following is a Facebook post by Deputy Prime Minister Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam.
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What a sensation Joseph Isaac Schooling is.
Fastest in the 100m butterfly heats. Fastest in the semi-finals. Fastest time in the world this year. Fastest Asian ever.
We felt so much pride when the commentator highlighted to the world, immediately after the heats, that two Singaporeans had qualified for the top 16. That was thanks to Quah Zheng Wen posting his personal best – he was not as brawny as the rest, but swam with great style.
Now Joseph has made it to the finals, topping the list, and history has been made for our little nation.
Joseph told the media after his semi-final win: “I feel fine.. It was all about posting a good enough time to get into top eight. And come back tomorrow and try to do it. It’s a good confidence booster but doesn’t really mean anything.” He’s quite the cool Joe.
Don’t miss the finals Saturday at 9.10am Singapore time.
(Photo credit: Kevin Lim, The Straits Times)