Singapore’s first Olympic medallist Tan Howe Liang dies, aged 91

SINGAPORE’S first Olympic medallist Tan Howe Liang died of pneumonia on Dec 3. He was 91.

A trailblazer in Singapore sport, the weightlifter made history at the 1960 Rome Olympics by clinching silver in the lightweight division.

Singapore National Olympic Council president Grace Fu said in a tribute: “Howe Liang’s achievement has inspired many generations of Singaporeans. Athletes of his generation had much lesser, but they accepted what they had and trained hard.

“His achievement in Rome goes to show what one can achieve, if one simply devotes himself to it. He also exemplifies the value of a true Olympian athlete through his humility and kindness.”

The third of seven children, Tan was born in the southern Chinese city of Swatow in 1933, moving to Singapore with his family when he was four and settling in the cramped quarters of Chinatown.

He picked up weightlifting after seeing a strongman competition at the now-defunct Gay World Amusement Park and began training seriously in 1952 after joining the Evergreen Weightlifting Party for 50 cents a month.

So dedicated was Tan to his athletic ambitions that the lack of financial support did not stop his sporting pursuits. He took on a variety of jobs ranging from dock worker, store clerk and electrician to fund his training and overseas competitions.

He was crowned national champion within a year, the start of what would be an illustrious career for him. At the 1958 Commonwealth Games, he set the world record in the clean-and-jerk, before claiming gold at the Asian and SEAP Games a year later.

Then came his Olympic success in the halls of the Palazzeto dello Sport in Rome. After a disappointing outing at the 1956 Melbourne Games where he finished ninth, Tan was determined to finish on the podium.

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This time he did. An hour and a half before the final lift at the 1960 Olympics in Rome, he felt an incredible pain in his legs and was advised by doctors to withdraw from the competition in order to seek treatment.

But the 27-year-old refused, and went on to lift 155kg in the clean-and-jerk. Having lifted a total of 380kg, Tan clinched a silver – Singapore’s first Olympic medal.

Before his retirement in 1967, Tan, who competed at three Olympics, struck another gold at the Commonwealth Games, this time in 1962.

He went on to guide several future champions, among them Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Teo Yong Joo and Chua Koon Siong.

Since Tan’s Olympic feat in 1960, the Republic’s athletes have gone on to win a gold and a silver, as well as three bronzes at the Games. Maximilian Maeder, 18, was the latest to triumph at the quadrennial event, clinching bronze in men’s kite foiling at the Paris Olympics. THE STRAITS TIMES