Singapore public raises more than S$130,000 for badminton world champion Loh Kean Yew after learning he did not earn any prize money
- Badminton fanatic Wei Chan launches the ‘Loh Kean Yew Encouragement Fund’ after the 24-year-old’s historic win last month
- ‘I felt compelled to do something to thank him for what he has achieved for himself and Singapore,’ says Chan
Fans of Singapore’s badminton world champion Loh Kean Yew have raised more than S$130,000 (US$95,700) for the 24-year-old after they learned he did not win any prize money for his victory.
Wei Chan, an “avid badminton player” and managing director of Pine Garden’s Cake, started the “Loh Kean Yew Encouragement Fund” campaign on platform Ray of Hope, which had raised S$132,996 from 606 donors by Thursday morning.
“I felt compelled to do something to thank him for what he has achieved for himself and Singapore, and further encourage him towards his badminton hope and dreams,” Chan, who launched the page on Sunday, wrote.
“Having gone through rigorous training of sorts, I know the amount of sheer hard work, perseverance, tenacity and grit that is required for Loh to achieve what he did, love for the game aside.”
Much of the fund – S$50,000 (HK$288,000) – was donated by Chan and four other Singaporean business leaders, Ang Kiam Meng (Jumbo Group), Daryl Neo (DC Frontiers), Dora Hoan (Best World International) and Eugene Ang (JK Technology).
“[Loh’s] win shows what we, as a little red dot, can achieve in the global badminton sporting arena,” Chan told The Business Times having found out that Loh did not win any prize money “due to the nature of this tournament”.
National shuttler Loh, who sits at a career-high world-ranking of 10, said the win would push him to continue his pursuit of becoming a better athlete, while also acknowledging he is the one to beat.
“Singapore, this is for you,” he wrote on Instagram post-win. “Only in my wildest dreams do I dare dream of this day – of a world champs medal, and of Singapore’s first.”
On Monday, Loh posted a photo at the Nas Sports Complex in Dubai alongside fellow badminton players Axelsen, Felix Burestedt, of Sweden, and Canada’s Brian Yang, captioning it with the hashtag #roadtoparis2024.
