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Tag: Singapore Silat Federation

  • Silat Helps Teenager Transform From Victim Of Bullying To Victor

    Silat Helps Teenager Transform From Victim Of Bullying To Victor

    When she was 11, Nurzuhairah Yazid became the victim of bullying in her primary school for reasons that remain a mystery to her to this day.

    The timid and quiet girl did not dare to speak out against her bully, opting instead to suffer in silence as she was tormented.

    Things finally changed when her mother encouraged her to take up silat to build her mettle and fortitude.

    Throughout her training — she began in the Tanding (combat) category — Nurzuhairah said she gradually “transformed” into a more confident and outspoken person.

    The change in Nurzuhairah also ensured that the bullying stopped within the year.

    However, Nurzuhairah’s journey in silat would continue.

    Today, the 19-year-old is one of Singapore’s top prospects in the sport.

    Singapore Silat Federation (SSF) chief executive officer Sheik Alau’ddin has earmarked her for a gold medal in the women’s Tunngal (individual artistic) category at the upcoming South-East Asian (SEA) Games in Kuala Lumpur.

    She won the same event at the SEA Pencak Silat Championships in the Malaysian capital in March.

    While admitting feeling “nervous” ahead of her SEA Games debut, Nurzuhairah says she will embrace the challenge.

    “I will be going up against people who are more experienced than me …those with world championships experience, so it will be tough for sure,” said Nurzuhairah, who will also be competing in the Regu (artistic team) event.

    “But if I can win gold at the SEA Championships, which features most of the SEA Games competitors, why can’t I do so for the Games as well?

    “I’m quite positive of my chances…I know that nothing is impossible and I know I have the capability to do it.”

    And while the fighter may stand at just 1.54m, Nurzuhairah’s rivals would do well not to underestimate her power and technique, Sheik Alau’ddin warned.

    “She may be small, but she packs a lot of power,” declared the former silat world champion. “She has more or less perfected her movement and technique as well, I don’t intend to overwhelm her with such a lofty target but I have full confidence in her ability.

    “She’s very dedicated to her training, but now, the key is to get her mind for the Games right, because the sport and her event requires full concentration and nerves of steel.”

    Sheik Alau’ddin added that even though he and his coaching team would “push her (Nurzuhairah) to the limit” during training, she would still always “give her 100 per cent” every day.

    Nurzuhairah however, admits to suffering days when the toll of her practising, coupled with the pressure from her studies, caused her to break down and cry.

    “I remember there was once when I was taking a bus back home from school, I was feeling so stressed with everything that I couldn’t help but just burst out crying,” said Nurzuhairah who graduated from the business services course at the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) College Central earlier this year.

    “It’s not been easy juggling the demands of my training with my studies. From secondary school all the way to ITE, I’ve always found myself lagging behind in class and needing to play catch-up. In fact, I expected to fail my modules at ITE and not graduate this year, so I’m quite surprised and proud that I managed to do so in the end.

    “Despite the difficulties, I keep going with silat because it brings me joy, and I want to make full use of my youth to fulfil my potential in the sport.”

    The eldest in her family, Nurzuhairah also finds meaning in being a role model and example to her younger brother and sister, who have also taken up the martial art.

    “I’m happy to be the trailblazer in the family for silat,” she said.

    “My hope is that I’ll be able inspire them and show them that it’s possible to go far in the sport.

    “They, along with my parents, have been immensely supportive of me in my silat journey. I want to show them that their belief in me is justified.

    “That is why I will put my heart and soul in this sport, and work hard so that I will one day become a world champion and make my family proud.”

     

    Source: http://www.todayonline.com/

  • Five-Gold Target For Singapore’s Silat Exponents

    Five-Gold Target For Singapore’s Silat Exponents

    The Singapore Silat Federation’s (SSF) Chief Executive Officer Sheik Alau’ddin is confident that his athletes will be able to deliver a best-ever result this year in the upcoming SEA Games at Kuala Lumpur. Although the traditional silat powerhouse Indonesia, hosts Malaysia and Vietnam are expected to put in strong performances, Sheik Alau’ddin has set a target of five gold medals from his Silat team to erase the team’s disappointment of clinching only one gold medal in the 2015 SEA Games.

    Sheik Alau’ddin is hopeful that the upcoming SEA Games will do Singapore proud and make silat recognized in the world stage which will ultimately place silat in the Olympics. To do this, Sheik Alau’ddin has proposed to the International Pencak Silat Federation to introduce an electronic competition and scoring system to improve the way silat’s tanding events are scored and officiated. The system is modelled after taekwondo, which introduced headgear and chest guards with proximity and impact sensors, as well as footpads lined with magnets to activate sensors, at the Rio Olympic Games last year.

    He stressed that the sport needs to change if it wants to build a strong case for inclusion at the Olympics. “Ultimately, we have to make changes for improvement. I’m sick and tired of all this. We have to make changes, the current scoring system is not clear cut or transparent. It will definitely help our chances at the Olympics if this is implemented. That way, everybody will be happy. The athletes train and fight, and if the system is correct, you cannot accuse the judges anymore.”

     

    Source: Today

  • Singapore Silat Chief: Fear Of Losing Messed Up Fighters’ Minds

    Singapore Silat Chief: Fear Of Losing Messed Up Fighters’ Minds

    The Singapore silat team won eight medals, including a gold, at the recent SEA Games. But the team has not been faring well in the past few editions compared to their glory years in 1999 and 2003.

    One by one, their athletes faltered at the semi-final stages of the Games, except for Muhammad Nur Alfian Juma’en. He defended his gold in the individual Class F finals after beating world champion Tran Dinh Nam from Vietnam, and famously shed tears on the podium, overwhelmed by the moment.

    Nur Alfian said: “The thing that was running through my mind was that everything was worth it. Like the sacrifices that I’ve done in terms of diet, school, time with family and the training was very tough. To be able to achieve the win, I can’t describe the emotions.”

    The 18-year-old first took up silat when he was five. Initially it was just for fun, but now, he is part of the elite team which has over 22 athletes.

    “The main thing is discipline because you have to take care of your diet. And you must also give 100 per cent in training every single time,” Nur Alfian said.

    He was one of 13 silat athletes fielded at the recent Games and the team ended with a haul of one gold, one silver and six bronze.

    Mr Sheik Alau’ddin, head of the Singapore Silat Federation, said: “I asked them, ‘What is the problem with you guys? Why are you so scared?’ And they said ‘I’m scared of losing. I’m scared because I might fall.’ So, all these things messed up their minds. The main priority now is to have the mental strength, how we need to develop individual athletes.”

    The team seems to fare better at other international and regional competitions. Singapore was crowned overall champions in the 5th Southeast Asian Pencak Silat Championships in April, defeating powerhouses like Malaysia and Indonesia along the way. The team received seven gold, two silver and 10 bronze in the competition. And Singapore’s silat exponents won one gold, three silver, and three bronze at the world championships in Phuket earlier in January.

    At the SEA Games though, they have only bagged four gold in the past five editions.

    Sheik Alau’ddin said the sport’s glory years at the Games were in 1999 and 2003. They had won three gold medals each in those years. But he said the sport is not losing its shine.

    “I’m not worried about all that. It’s just the individual athletes, whether they’re hungry enough, whether they want to be on the highest podium,” he said. “You see, like Alfian, he fought in the finals and his toe was split open and there’s blood everywhere. If it’s someone who is not strong enough and they look at the blood, they might not continue.”

    This hunger to win will be put to the test when they compete at the International Malaysia Open Silat Championship in September.

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com