Sports Minutes with Zia-ul Raushan

Anticipation is building up among cycling fans as Jasper Philipsen, Chris Froome and Sepp Kuss become the latest names to join a star-studded field set to compete at the upcoming Oct 28-29 Tour de France Prudential Singapore Criterium. To find out more we check in with Goh Theng Kiat, Chief Customer Officer, Prudential Singapore. Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg |  rau...

With two gold, three silver and four bronze medals - Team Singapore’s bowlers had their most successful outing yet at the recently concluded IBF World Bowling Championships. How did they achieve this feat, and how are the securing a bright future by emphasising on youth development? We speak to Dr Valerie Teo, President of Singapore Bowling, to find out more! READ MORE:  https://www.straitstimes.c...

Harry Maguire and Andre Onana have been heavily scrutinised in recent times. But they came out swinging last night, as Maguire scored a match winner and Onana saved a last gasp penalty to seal a crucial 1-0 win for Manchester United. Is this the start of a road to redemption, for both the players and the club? We discuss! Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg |  raushan@sph...

Entrusted by Mikel Arteta to replace Aaron Ramsdale as Arsenal's starting goalkeeper, David Raya has left his manager in a spot of bother after some unconvincing displays that has cost the Gunners. But is this all Arteta's doing, and how will he resolve the issue as his team look to mount a Premier League title challenge? Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edanker@sph.com.sg |  raushan@sph...

What is the Singapore spirit? Is this narrative only attainable by the young athletes from sports and elite schools with ample opportunities to train, perform, and win national championships? What about our aspiring sportsmen from neighbourhood schools, who don’t see themselves represented in inter-school games due to the lack of resources, awareness, and opportunities?  With three Sports Academie...

Despite being 38 and supposedly in the twilight of his career, Cristiano Ronaldo shows no signs of letting up topping the 2023 goal scorers' charts, with 40 goals for club and country - taking his career tally to 859! Well we had to go out and get a bonafide goalscorer to get his opinion - and who else but a man who scored 363 goals in a 27 year-career, including 24 for his adopted home of Singapo...

Developed to introduce students to F1 in the most engaging way possible – through the creation of a miniature F1 car – F1 in Schools is an educational project like no other. Designed for teachers, informed by engineers, and endorsed by F1, this programme gives students an insight into the fast lanes; and provides a lot of fun on the way there.  We speak to the two members of the XCLerate Racing te...

Singapore defeated Guam 3-1 over two legs, to secure progress to the next stage of qualification for the 2026 World Cup. Despite getting over the line, the manner of the victory against continental minnows Guam, who are ranked 201st in the world - has raised more questions about Takayuki Nishigaya's tenure as Lions' head coach. Deepanraj Ganesan, sports reporter with The Straits Times, joins us to...

Singapore Aquatics is set to honour the men and women who have contributed to its achievements with an Aquatics Hall of Fame  - to be launched in 2024. The Hall of Fame’s inauguration will be part of the 85th anniversary celebrations of SAQ, the body for swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming and open water swimming. To find out more we speak to Mark Chay, president of Singapore Aquatics....

For these former national women’s team football team players, walking is the new running as they take on a modified version of the beautiful game. We speak to two members of the “4 Ever Young The Legends” team - captain 67-year old Madam Maimun Wahab and 22-year old Ms Nur Hanis Amira, to find out more! READ MORE: https://www.straitstimes.com/multimedia/graphics/2023/10/walking-football-singapore/...

Flying the flag for the Lion City in Indonesia, Jacob Mahler is seemingly living up to his much talked about potential. But what are the perks of playing abroad, and how does he deal with the pressure that comes with representing the nation? We speak to Singapore footballer and Madura United defender Jacob Mahler ahead of the Lions' crunch World Cup Qualifier against Guam to find out more. Got a s...

When we talk about eSports more often than not we envision being sat on a couch with a controller in hand. What could be so taxing about that? Well, with the burgeoning interest and influx of money into the world of gaming - the pressure to perform is at an all-time high. Beyond gaming, eSports athletes have also become brand ambassadors - which in itself ramps up the pressure. So how do they cope...

In his first media interview since being elected FAS President, Bernard Tan sat down with The Straits Times to share why he decided to step up, what the scene needs to do to measure up to others in the region and what changes local football fans can look forward to. But are the fans convinced? Well we assembled a panel of members from the fraternity - Deepanraj Ganesan, sports reporter with The St...

Arguably one of the most-played console game of all time for football lovers the world over, FIFA is now known as EAFC24 - after ending a long-standing partnership with the game's governing body, and venturing into a brave new world under new name and new guise. But has the change on the cover had a knock-on effect on the gameplay? Jake Su, games editor with Geek Culture, shares his observations....

Newcastle's meteoric rise under Eddie Howe continues - as the Magpies thumped PSG 4-1 to cap a memorable night in the Champions League. In stark contrast, ten Hag's troubles continues - as Manchester United lost their 6th match in 10 games this season, falling to a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Galatasaray. Tune in as we discuss and dissect both the clubs, and the road ahead. Got a story to tell? Get...

Has PGMOL releasing the audio from the officials of Luis Diaz's controversial disallowed goal clarified the debate that has waged on since the weekend? Evidently not, judging by the noise on social media. We speak to FIFA-certified referee Taqi Jahari - who has been on VAR duty at FIFA men's & women's World Cups - for his expert opinion on this matter. We also hear from fans on their take, and...

Shanti Pereira ended Singapore's 49-year wait for an Asian Games gold medal in athletics by winning the women's 200m final at the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou - capping a stellar year on track that's seen her win medal after medal, smash record after record. What can we learn from Shanti's heroics, and where to from here for Singapore's sprint queen? We speak to Rohit Brijnath, assistant sports edito...

Liverpool fell victim to a "significant human error" as the PGMOL admitted that VAR officials had failed to act after Luis Diaz's 34th-minute strike at Tottenham was wrongly ruled out for offside. With the catalogue of errors by officials piling up, how can the refereeing body restore credibility? And speaking of apologies, Guardiola might owe one to "that Korean guy" as Hwang Hee-chan scored the...

Singapore's Tampines Rovers and Thailand's BG Pathum have entered into a three-year collaboration with the Singaporean club set to be renamed BG Tampines Rovers from 2024. After three years, the Thai club will take over the Stags' operations, potentially paving the way for more privatised teams in the SPL. Is this good news for the local game? And what does it mean for the competitiveness of the l...

We all know her name, Angela Lee. We all know her craft, mixed martial arts. But beyond the guts, glory, fame and fortune lies a battle with overcoming the inner demons - fuelled by the pressure of having to live in the public eye. In this tell-all interview Angela opens up on her suicide attempt in 2017, her younger sister Victoria taking her own life and setting up Fightstory - a non-profit orga...

While Postecoglu has made a splash to life at Spurs, Pochettino's time at the Chelsea has got off to a difficult start. Tottenham have seemingly adopted Ange-ball in a matter of weeks, while the Blues continue to struggle to justify their billion-dollar wage bill. With patience running thin amongst the Stamford Bridge faithful, we wonder if identities actually matter in football?  James Walton, sp...

Singapore Premier League defending champions Albirex Niigata (S) have announced a shift in policy from being a club with mainly Japanese professionals to one with predominantly Singaporean players. So why have the club decided to go local, and why now - ahead of their 20th season in top flight Singapore football? We speak to  Dominic Wong, Albirex Niigata Team Manager & Club Executive and Hilm...

Another day, another defeat. Manchester United's difficult start to the season continued, as they suffered a THIRD consecutive defeat - this time in the UEFA Champions League away to Bayern Munich. But beyond the losses and goals conceded, it's the worrying lack of identity that has dominated the headlines. We discuss and dissect the state of affairs in the company of Deepanraj Ganesan, sports rep...

SGX Cares Bull Charge is the only corporate charity initiative that brings together the financial community and SGX-listed companies to support the needs of underprivileged children and families, persons with disabilities, as well as the elderly. Through fundraising events like Charity Golf, Charity Futsal and Charity Run, SGX Cares has raised over S$48 million for over 50 charities since 2004. ​...

Is Formula 1 boring? Not if the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix was anything to go by! We recap the pulsating race that saw Ferrari paint the Lion city red, as Carlos Sainz won his first race for the Scuderia. We hear from Sains as well as Toto Wolff, Helmut Marko, Will Buxton and the fans as we look back on the 14th edition of the spectacular night race! Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! edank...