Singapore — In addition to his generous previous gifts to the Singapore Olympic Foundation, it was announced on July 3, Wednesday that billionaire Peter Lim will be donating a total of S$30 million for initiatives involving the country’s youth, especially athletes and those coming from underprivileged backgrounds.
The amount of S$10 million will be disbursed from 2021 through 2030 to the Singapore Olympic Foundation (SOF)-Peter Lim Scholarship. Mr Lim started the scholarship in 2010 with the same amount. To date 2,642 of four types of scholarships have been given out—Primary, Secondary, Tertiary and High Performance Under-18.
Qualified scholars are allowed to use the money from the scholarships for school-related costs, in addition to sport and competition expenses.
A statement from the organisation said that most of the beneficiaries are from financially challenged backgrounds, who have shown excellence in their chosen sport.
For 2019, the amount of S$781,000 has been disbursed to 280 student-athletes representing 83 schools from 44 different sporting events.
In addition to the S$10 million in athletic scholarships, the tycoon will also be giving S$20 million towards beginning a community initiative that will aid children from underprivileged households to grow to their full potential.
A Facebook post from the Singapore National Olympic Council said that the details of this community initiative will be announced soon.
The award presentation ceremony of the Singapore Olympic Foundation (SOF)-Peter Lim Scholarship was held on Wednesday, July 3, at the Temasek Convention Centre. Deputy Prime Minister Mr Heng Swee Keat was the Guest of Honour, with multiple Olympic-medalist for swimming, Libby Trickett, as the special guest.
Ng Ser Miang, International Olympic Committee (IOC) executive board member and Singapore Olympic Foundation chairman, as well as Tan Chuan-Jin, Speaker of Parliament and president of the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC), also graced the ceremony.
In his speech, Mr Heng said that the billionaire’s generosity has played a big part in the success of many of the country’s young athletes.
The Deputy Prime Minister said, ”This ecosystem of support required to bring the best out of Team Singapore athletes cannot be undertaken by Government alone. Every stakeholder has a part to play.
When I spoke about how we would build our future Singapore together two weeks ago, I highlighted how the Government needs to work better with you. We will need to shift from a government that focuses primarily on working for you, to one that also works with you.
This is no different in the area of sports development. Working together will allow us to better draw on the diversity of passion and expertise among us.
We will need to better bring together the many stakeholders – including the SNOC, Singapore National Paralympic Council, the NSAs, officials, healthcare professionals, sports scientists, coaches, parents, athletes, corporates, as well as the wider community.”
Mr Heng presented the IOC Trophy, which carries the theme “Olympism in Action”, to Mr Lim, in recognition from the IOC and SNOC for his generous contributions to sports in Singapore, as well as the country’s athletic community.
On his Facebook page, the Deputy Prime Minister wrote, “A big thank you to Peter for his support for the Singapore Olympic Foundation-Peter Lim Scholarship, as well as to Ng Ser Miang and Tan Chuan-Jin for their leadership in the sports community. Not forgetting the painstaking support by parents, teachers, and coaches for our young athletes.
I was glad to meet many of our budding and current Team Singapore young sportsmen and sportswomen at the Singapore Olympic Foundation-Peter Lim Scholarship 2019 Award Ceremony earlier. The cash award from the scholarship will help them to focus on their school and sporting activities.
I hope the award will serve to motivate them to achieve their sporting goals and do Singapore proud!”/ TISG