By Lin Xinyi
The Straits Times
Monday, Jan 14, 2013
FORMER national paddler Li Jiawei returns to her native Beijing next week, but there is still a piece of Singapore that she can call her own.
Since October 2011, a freehold condominium unit along Sixth Avenue in Bukit Timah has been her home. It was bought with a future in her adopted country in mind, and her decision to end one of the most successful sporting careers in the Republic's history is not about to change that.
"Although I'm leaving, I don't want to cut off ties," the 31-year-old told The Straits Times. "Ideally, I'll travel quite a bit between Singapore and Beijing."
The Chinese capital is where she will reunite with her parents, businessman husband, and three-year-old Singapore-born son. And while her detractors have argued that it was always her intention to go back to China, Singapore's top-earning athlete from the Multi-Million Dollar Award Programme (MAP) insists she is no mercenary.
"I know a lot of people say that. It doesn't make me angry. In my mind, there are more Singaporeans who support me than those who don't," said Li, who has earned an estimated $1.27 million from the MAP programme since she arrived here in 1996 under the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme.
Locals who have not taken to the former world No. 3 have been vocal. Some have written to forums of this newspaper, others have voiced their opinions online, while a few have even confronted Li in person.
After competing in her first of four Olympics at the 2000 Sydney Games, an elderly man approached her in Toa Payoh asking why she had to come to Singapore and stifle the growth of local talent.
Another time, she was in a changing room at a boutique in Orchard Road when a woman questioned why she could not just stay in China.
"I just tell them that I like Singapore," she said. "I've never felt a need to prove that I'm Singaporean. Singapore is in my bones, in my heart."
Her results on court have seldom been the subject of cross-examination. She has made two trips to the Olympic podium, owns a world team title and six Asian Games medals.
Along with seven Commonwealth Games and 14 SEA Games golds, her achievements have made her the first millionairess athlete in Singapore, and she is not about to feel guilty about that.
"I think it's quite natural to get some rewards for my efforts," said Li, who will be selling her white BMW 5 Series sedan that she bought last year but not her top-floor apartment, which she will not be renting out either.
"But no matter what I do next in life, I still want to give back to Singapore."
With the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA) set to make an announcement regarding the next phase of her career, Li was coy about her new job.
She would only say that she will work for a company in Beijing that has links to Singapore, although she revealed that her interest lies in public relations.
If not for a stubborn knee injury and a family who want to see more of her, Li conceded that she would still be wielding a bat.
She had wanted to prove to herself that she could make the 2016 Rio Olympics and plug a gap in her otherwise impressive CV - she is still missing an individual medal after fourth-place finishes in the women's singles at the 2004 and 2008 Games.
But she knows she is leaving the sport on a high.
At the London Olympics last year, she won both the second singles and doubles matches in Singapore's 3-0 win over South Korea in the women's team bronze-medal play-off.
Coincidentally, her last match on the International Table Tennis Federation World Tour last year was also a win over Korean duo Dang Ye Seo and Seok Ha Jung, giving Li and Wang Yuegu the Brazil Open women's doubles title.
"My playing days ended perfectly," a smiling Li said at her two-storey, three-bedroom home, which is conspicuously devoid of medals and trophies.
But once an athlete, always an athlete. Five days ago, feeling the urge to do what she has known almost all her life, she turned up for the national team's training session at the STTA to practise for more than an hour.
That trip, however, only served to make her realise what she would be missing after announcing her retirement a fortnight ago.
"The squad now sing the national anthem before the start of training every Monday morning," she said.
"When I heard it that day, it dawned on me that I won't have the chance to stand on a podium again."
The void she felt grew that night, when she was packing her luggage and found a pot that she and room-mate Sun Beibei used to cook noodles and rice with while on Tour. She took it out, cleaned it, and thought of how much she would miss travelling on the professional circuit.
There are memories from more than 115 tournaments, some of which hang on the walls of her home among family portraits and photos of her son, Terry.
"Getting used to retirement has been harder than I expected," she admitted.
But she retires knowing this: A piece of Singapore's sporting history will always belong to her.
[email protected]
The Straits Times
Monday, Jan 14, 2013
FORMER national paddler Li Jiawei returns to her native Beijing next week, but there is still a piece of Singapore that she can call her own.
Since October 2011, a freehold condominium unit along Sixth Avenue in Bukit Timah has been her home. It was bought with a future in her adopted country in mind, and her decision to end one of the most successful sporting careers in the Republic's history is not about to change that.
"Although I'm leaving, I don't want to cut off ties," the 31-year-old told The Straits Times. "Ideally, I'll travel quite a bit between Singapore and Beijing."
The Chinese capital is where she will reunite with her parents, businessman husband, and three-year-old Singapore-born son. And while her detractors have argued that it was always her intention to go back to China, Singapore's top-earning athlete from the Multi-Million Dollar Award Programme (MAP) insists she is no mercenary.
"I know a lot of people say that. It doesn't make me angry. In my mind, there are more Singaporeans who support me than those who don't," said Li, who has earned an estimated $1.27 million from the MAP programme since she arrived here in 1996 under the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme.
Locals who have not taken to the former world No. 3 have been vocal. Some have written to forums of this newspaper, others have voiced their opinions online, while a few have even confronted Li in person.
After competing in her first of four Olympics at the 2000 Sydney Games, an elderly man approached her in Toa Payoh asking why she had to come to Singapore and stifle the growth of local talent.
Another time, she was in a changing room at a boutique in Orchard Road when a woman questioned why she could not just stay in China.
"I just tell them that I like Singapore," she said. "I've never felt a need to prove that I'm Singaporean. Singapore is in my bones, in my heart."
Her results on court have seldom been the subject of cross-examination. She has made two trips to the Olympic podium, owns a world team title and six Asian Games medals.
Along with seven Commonwealth Games and 14 SEA Games golds, her achievements have made her the first millionairess athlete in Singapore, and she is not about to feel guilty about that.
"I think it's quite natural to get some rewards for my efforts," said Li, who will be selling her white BMW 5 Series sedan that she bought last year but not her top-floor apartment, which she will not be renting out either.
"But no matter what I do next in life, I still want to give back to Singapore."
With the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA) set to make an announcement regarding the next phase of her career, Li was coy about her new job.
She would only say that she will work for a company in Beijing that has links to Singapore, although she revealed that her interest lies in public relations.
If not for a stubborn knee injury and a family who want to see more of her, Li conceded that she would still be wielding a bat.
She had wanted to prove to herself that she could make the 2016 Rio Olympics and plug a gap in her otherwise impressive CV - she is still missing an individual medal after fourth-place finishes in the women's singles at the 2004 and 2008 Games.
But she knows she is leaving the sport on a high.
At the London Olympics last year, she won both the second singles and doubles matches in Singapore's 3-0 win over South Korea in the women's team bronze-medal play-off.
Coincidentally, her last match on the International Table Tennis Federation World Tour last year was also a win over Korean duo Dang Ye Seo and Seok Ha Jung, giving Li and Wang Yuegu the Brazil Open women's doubles title.
"My playing days ended perfectly," a smiling Li said at her two-storey, three-bedroom home, which is conspicuously devoid of medals and trophies.
But once an athlete, always an athlete. Five days ago, feeling the urge to do what she has known almost all her life, she turned up for the national team's training session at the STTA to practise for more than an hour.
That trip, however, only served to make her realise what she would be missing after announcing her retirement a fortnight ago.
"The squad now sing the national anthem before the start of training every Monday morning," she said.
"When I heard it that day, it dawned on me that I won't have the chance to stand on a podium again."
The void she felt grew that night, when she was packing her luggage and found a pot that she and room-mate Sun Beibei used to cook noodles and rice with while on Tour. She took it out, cleaned it, and thought of how much she would miss travelling on the professional circuit.
There are memories from more than 115 tournaments, some of which hang on the walls of her home among family portraits and photos of her son, Terry.
"Getting used to retirement has been harder than I expected," she admitted.
But she retires knowing this: A piece of Singapore's sporting history will always belong to her.
[email protected]
