Singapore got their First Gold!

Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong immediately congratualated Singapore’s first Gold Medalist, Joseph Isaac Schooling on Facebook by saying : “My heartiest congratulations to Joseph Isaac Schooling for his historic gold medal win, and Olympic record of 50.39 seconds for the 100m butterfly! This is Singapore’s first Olympic gold medal ever, and also our first medal for 2016. “It is an incredible feat, to compete among the world’s best, stay focussed, and emerge victorious. Congrats once again to Joseph, you made us very proud today,”

Lee said in a latest Facebook posting that Schooling was a second ahead of his idol American swimmer Michael Phelps, who finished at 51.14s jointly with South Africa’s Chad le Clos and Hungarian Laszlo Cseh. With that record, he has also broken Phelps’ Olympic Beijing 2008 of 50.58s. Phelps has already won four gold medals in Rio and 22 of those in total, including three in the 100m butterfly from the past three Games. “To all of Team Singapore – thank you for showing us what it means to work hard and never give up on our dreams,” Lee wrote further. Meanwhile, President Tony Tan had this to say, “Witnessed history being created today!”

The Singapore president is currently visiting Rio de Janeiro from Aug 11 to 15 to support Team Singapore at the 2016 Summer Olympics. “Congratulations to Joseph Schooling, for bagging the Gold medal in the Olympic Men 100m Butterfly in 50.39s and breaking the Olympics record in the process! Schooling’s hard work has certainly paid off. “Singaporeans back home must be as thrilled as I am, to see Schooling being crowned as THE best in the world. We are so proud of him.” Tan noted that the Olympics is not just about achievements, but also about the journey and the effort. “I am most heartened by how Schooling pushed himself hard against the best in the world in order to put Singapore on the Olympic world map. The values that brought him thus far continue to make him a role model for many of us,” he said. Besides leaders, Singaporeans poured ‘massive’ congratulatory wishes not only to Schooling but also to his family.