SINGAPORE: Workers’ Party chairperson Sylvia Lim is set to tie the knot with her longtime partner, football legend Quah Kim Song, next January.
Ms Lim, who represents Aljunied GRC in Parliament, revealed to CNA today (22 Oct) that the wedding “will take place in a church, in the presence of family members”.
Mr Quah, who belongs to a prominent football family, was one of the most famous Singapore footballers in the late sixties and early seventies. He quickly became a household name due to his swift agility.
The striker’s speed earned him the nicknames “Mercurial”, “Quicksilver,” and “Speed Demon” by fans and media.
Among his most memorable matches was the 1977 Malaysia Cup Final at Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he scored two goals in a 3–2 win for Singapore against Penang.
The 72-year-old has remained a draw at recent social matches despite retiring from professional football years ago.
After leaving pro football, Mr Quah was in the corporate sector and had an early retirement. He has two adult children by his late wife, Mdm Shirley Wang, who succumbed to cancer in 2007, and young grandchildren.
An avid guitarist, Mr Quah met Ms Lim at a WP variety concert in 2013 when mutual friends coaxed him to get on the stage and perform his rendition of Keith Locke & The Quests’ Don’t Play That Song.
Ms Lim told the press she was impressed, and the pair later danced on stage. Ms Lim added that their common interests in music and football drew the couple to one another.
The 59-year-old veteran politician used to watch Mr Quah during his heyday at Malaysia Cup matches at the National Stadium.
After they became a couple, she made it a point to attend and cheer for Mr Quah when he played in social matches.
Although he has expressed a desire to keep a low profile, Mr Quah is also not shy about supporting Ms Lim in her political career.
During the 2015 general election, he served as Ms Lim’s personal chauffeur so that he could still see her despite the heat of her hustings.
In a rare 2013 interview, Mr Quah – who described Ms Lim as his “garang” girlfriend – said:
“We are very happy just going with the flow without any preconceptions about what the future might bring.”
Ms Lim added: “As both of us are not spring chickens, we accept each other totally and do not change the other.”
Congratulations have poured in as news of the couple’s impending marriage broke online.
Hundreds of Singaporeans have congratulated the couple in social media comments, showering them with blessings as they step into the next chapter of their lives.