REALLY NICE GESTURE: YIP

Two-gold heroine heartened by turnout of over 3,000 at bus parade for Paralympians

- Deepanraj Ganesan

Blaring horns sounded as the open-top bus parade kicked off at 11.30am at the OCBC Aquatic Centre on Sept 14 with Singapore's 10member contingent from the Paris Paralympics on board.

Thankfully, the heavy downpour in the wee hours had stopped for the para-athletes to enjoy their day of celebration, as about 3,000 redclad supporters many of them waving flags and holding signs lined the city streets to cheer on Team Singapore.

The two-hour parade began at Kallang with a brief welcome ceremony. Close to a hundred Team Singapore fans and Sport Singapore staff gathered to cheer on the athletes before Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong presented each Paralympian with an orchid garland.

The Singapore contingent comprised double-gold champion Yip Pin Xiu, Toh Wei Soong and Sophie Soon (swimming), Diroy Noordin (athletics), Daniel Chan (shooting), Laurentia Tan, Gemma Foo and Hilary Su (equestrian), silver medallist Jeralyn Tan (boccia) and Nur Syahidah Alim (archery).