Speech By Mr Teo Ser Luck at The Launch Of 'Let's PLay Non Stop'

Speech By Mr Teo Ser Luck, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry Of Community Development Youth And Sports, At The Launch Of “Let’s PLay Non-Stop”

SPEECH BY MR TEO SER LUCK, SENIOR PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT YOUTH AND SPORTS, AT THE LAUNCH OF “LET’S PLAY NON-STOP” FRIDAY, 29 APRIL 2011, 1.30PM, AT GARDEN PLAZA, IMM SHOPPING MALL

Mr Antonio Del Rosario, General Manager, Coca-Cola Singapore;

Media Partners;

Ladies and Gentlemen

1 Good afternoon. It is my pleasure to join you today at the launch of Let’s Play Non-Stop - our latest initiative under the Let’s Play movement.

2 At Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and Singapore Sports Council (SSC), we strongly believe that sports can play an important part in our lives, individually, and collectively in the family, in the schools and in the community. Sports contribute to mental strength and physical health, and forms emotional ties, through enjoyable moments and shared experiences.

3 Sports is not just about playing, it is also about watching, cheering, and volunteering. Most importantly, it is about having fun!

4 The Let’s Play Movement started in 2008, to instil the value of sports in every individual, family and organisation. Through a range of programmes and public awareness campaigns, “Let’s Play” has helped to connect, energise and enrich Singaporeans from all walks of life.

5 To encourage more people to be involved in “Let’s Play”, we have increased the number of venues for sports. For example, we now have 135 additional school and public fields over the weekends for football and other field activities. There are now 45 school Indoor Sports Halls for badminton or volleyball which are open to the public. Families with young children can spend quality time together at our Sengkang Sports and Recreation Centre with its exciting water slides. For those who are adventurous, our Tampines Bike Park is where you can test your skills on our mountain bike trail. With the diverse offering of facilities, we should all be able to find something that we like and make sports a part of our life.

6 Sports is, however, not just for participants. Supporting our favorite players or athletes and cheering them on together with our family, friends, neighbours and colleagues will help build and strengthen relationships. We will have something common to share, to talk about and to look forward to as a family and as community. Therefore, with our partners, we are continuing to enrich our sports calendar with more exciting events. In June, we will have the Canon Lion City Cup which features our very own Under 15 and Youth Olympic Games football teams facing off the youth squads of top foreign teams from Juventus, Everton and Benfica. In July, our netball team will challenge top national teams in the Mission Foods World Netball Championships 2011. The World Netball Championships is the equivalent of FIFA World Cup for Netball. Some of us will have friends and relatives among the players, while others will attend the events simply because it is a beautiful game. Regardless of results, we are there to support and cheer on our favorite teams and players, and have a good time with our friends, family and colleagues.

7 Today’s launch of the new programme - Let’s Play Non-Stop aims to spark off people’s interest in sports which they have yet to explore. The eight-month outreach programme will bring more sporting fun to the heartlands, promoting and encouraging participation in a different sport each month, starting with Netball. Like what you see here, there will be road shows bringing opportunities to learn the sport from experts, play alongside with Team Singapore athletes, and possibly sign up for more coaching. Take the opportunity to learn about history of the sport, and also take part in games and lucky draws.

8 Today, I am also very heartened to share that Coca-Cola will be partnering SSC for the next five years to spread the message and values of the Let’s Play movement. Coca-Cola has long been a great supporter of sports, globally and in Singapore. They have also contributed greatly to the success and promotion of the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore last year. Coca-Cola’s support is invaluable in our efforts to bring sports to the masses, and to build a vibrant Sporting Singapore. We strongly believe that partnerships with the private sectors are mutually beneficial, and we encourage more companies to step up and be part of our sporting journey.

9 Thank you.