Review of Major Games Award Programme

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) whether the Government is aware of when was the last review of the Major Games Award Programme; (b) if so, when was it; and (c) whether the Ministry will work with the Singapore National Olympic Council to update cash incentives under the Programme given inflation, and to provide incentives for SEA Games Silver and Bronze medallists.

The Government directly invests in the development of our athletes in a few areas.

First, we give direct support to our athletes through the Sport Excellence initiatives, commonly known as "spex". This includes our spexCarding, spexPotential and spexScholarship programmes, where athletes receive holistic and individualised support encompassing sport science, sport medicine and athlete life support, as well as grants to offset training costs and loss of wages. The spexPotential and spexScholarship programmes provide monthly stipends to athletes, recognising their commitment to an increased training and competition load.

Second, we invest in building up support services needed by our athletes, such as providing dedicated funding for sport science and sport medicine, coaches, athlete life services and sporting infrastructure.

We are committed to sustained investment in developing athletes to their full potential and such support is not conditional only on winning medals. Recognition and rewards play a complementary role in incentivising our athletes. The Government recognises this.

SportSG administers the Singapore Sport Hall of Fame, which celebrates the exceptional achievements and contributions of Singapore's sporting heroes. The Singapore Sport Hall of Fame now includes a new category for sport leaders and recognises the achievements of athletes beyond medals, including contributions back to sport and the community. But it takes a whole Singapore village to journey with, support and develop our athletes. We greatly appreciate efforts by the community to step forward to recognise and support our athletes in all forms.

With regard to the Major Games Award Programme (MAP), it is a private award scheme managed by the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) and funded by their sponsors.

SNOC reviews the scheme periodically and decides on the categories of awarded medallists and the monetary rewards offered to each of them, in consultation with sponsors. The MAP award structure takes into account the level of competition and the frequency of the Major Games. The Olympic, Commonwealth and Asian Games have more competitive fields and take place every four years, compared to the Southeast Asian Games that takes place every two years.

We encourage more corporates and sponsors to come forward to support our athletes and contribute to MAP. Beyond MAP, the SNOC and the National Sports Associations (NSAs) recognise our athletes' achievements in other ways, such as SNOC's annual Singapore Sports Awards and NSAs' awards nights and dinners.