SINGAPORE — When Timothy Tan first heard that a victory parade was being planned for Singapore’s Paralympians after their return from Rio, one of the first thoughts that struck him was how it could be a challenge to get them into an open-top bus, as most of them are on wheelchairs.
His next thought: why not give them a victory parade that would be better and more special than an open-top bus parade? Why not drive them around in an open-top Ferrari convoy instead?
And since the director of law firm AsiaLegal LLC was also the former president of the Ferrari Owners’ Singapore Club, he reached for his phone and called a few friends to ask them if they would like to help out. The answer? A resounding yes!
“It took me just two days to gather everyone. In fact, I had to turn down some people as there were more who agreed to do this,” Tan recalled with a laugh on Saturday morning (Sept 24) as he spoke to TODAY at the VivoCity mall, the final pit stop for the Paralympians’ victory parade.
“I called Sport Singapore (Sport SG) up some time last week, and they had to clear this. So by the time, they cleared this (idea), I only had three or four days to call my friends up.”
Apart from rustling up his fellow Ferrari owners, Tan, who is married and has a teenaged daughter, also sourced for some special Ferrari-themed gifts for the para-athletes. They each received a Ferrari cap with their names printed on it.
“I approached the Ferrari store to buy them, but when they heard they will be for our Paralympians, they donated the caps to us instead,” said the 54-year-old legal eagle.
“Each cap also has the Singapore flag on the front. The caps were initially customised for the Singapore Grand Prix, but I customised it further. I got the individual names of each of the Paralympians embodied on the caps. The people did it overnight, and they didn’t charge.
The Ferraris also carried the Team Singapore logos on their side and a “Thank You” sticker on their bonnets. According to Tan, these were also done free of charge. “The guys who did the car stickers for me also did it overnight,” he said.
“They sent their team down Sengkang Sports Centre just now too to stick them on, and they also waived off the charges because they were for Team Singapore.”
Tan said that even though many of the members from the Ferrari Owners’ Singapore Club are businessmen, lawyers and bankers and are fairly well to do, being part of the convoy, and getting up close to the Paralympians was both an honour and an unforgettable moment for them.
“We really appreciate the honour and opportunity to be able to do this,” he said.
“I drove the Chef De Mission (Ho Cheng Kwee) today, and he gave me an idea of their sports excellence programme for these Paralympians and it was quite an eye-opener for me.
“It is really a professionally-run sports endeavour that these athletes are on, not just fun and games. I think Team Singapore did really well at the Paralympics. The swimmers swam so well and even broke world records. I really take my hat off to them.
“I think the disabled athletes in Singapore tend to play second fiddle to the able-bodied ones. They are always in the shadow of their more glamourous counterparts.. I think they do as good as a job, and I think they put in much more effort in their sport than some able-bodied athletes.”
Elaine Lim-Chan, a member of the Ferrari convoy, agreed. The 45-year-old managing director of Deutsche Bank ,Wealth Management, said she came away with a new-found respect for Singapore’s para-athletes after driving Yip Pin Xiu around.
“I am very proud of our Paralympians. They have done Singapore proud. So, extraordinary achievements deserve extraordinary celebrations. We are just doing our little part, and we are very thankful to have the honour and privilege to drive them,” she said.
““I chatted with Pin Xiu about family, what she hopes to do in the future, and her plans for the 2020 Paralympics. I think for now, everything been a little overwhelming for her. So she needs to get enough sleep, she said, and try to think what would be her future steps.
“Pin Xiu is very inspirational. She has to train twice a day, and on top of that, she has school at SMU (Singapore Management University).
“She is mentally very strong, and her story is an inspiration to many Singaporeans. Regardless of where you are, what you do, and how you are born, there is hope that if you love something, you just go for it.
“I am full of admiration for her.”
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