Sports Minutes with Zia-ul Raushan

With the 15th edition of the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix set to light up the night sky this weekend, who will rule the streets? Can the in form McLarens secure their first win in the Lion City, or will the established likes of Verstappen and Hamilton come to the fore? Alex Yoong, former F1 driver & Matthew Marsh, F1 commercial consultant weigh in on Sports Minutes. Got a story to tell? Get...

Since their inception in 2020, the Lion City Sailors have often prided themselves in being a cut above the rest. Be it the signing of the league's first multi-million dollar player, or state-of-the-art training facilities - the boys in blue have raised the bar year on year, both on and off the pitch. And staying true to their trail blazing ways, the club have recently launched an official music vi...

While the Lion City Sailors women's team clinched their 3rd consecutive league title, the Singapore Premier League was back in session after the September International window. And the Sailors men's team showed their supremacy to go top of the table, while the stumbling Stags dropped yet more points. We review all the thrills and spills in the company of Deepanraj Ganesan! Got a story to tell? Get...

With 7 gold medals to her name, Yip Pin Xiu is Singapore's MOST DECORATED Paralympian. 16 years since her first games gold in Beijing 2008, Pin Xiu marked her milestone FIFTH games at Paris 2024 by achieving an historic three-peat of golds. So what drives her insatiable desire for success, how long will she continue to compete and what does she make of the support for para-athletes in Singapore? T...

Fresh from his "familiarisation stint" with the Singapore Men's National football team, Perry Ng is in the Sports Minutes hot seat to tell us about his about his dreams of representing the Lions, the timeline to attaining Singapore citizenship and his thoughts on the detractors who are questioning his intentions. Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! raushan@sph.com.sg See omnystudio.com/list...

When it comes to local sports - more often than not swimming, athletics and even football dominates the headlines. But amongst the 'less heralded' sports making greats strides in Singapore is floorball. And part of their outreach is the upcoming "Floorball Fever Fiesta" - happening on 31 August & 1 September at Velocity - which aims to bring the sport closer to the community. Tune in as Ben Ow...

The European transfer window closes this week, and the countdown is on for clubs to get their business done. With concerns surrounding PSR enforcements at an all-time high, and the influx of Saudi money flat-lining - what have you made of how clubs have conducted their dealings this summer? And with the deadline looming, who needs to get what done? James Walton, Deloitte's Sports Business Group Le...

Expensively assembled squad? Check. Huge expectations to deliver? Check. Struggling to convince us of an identity? Check. The similarities between the Lion City Sailors and Manchester United are uncanny. Why is this the case? And what should Aleksandar Rankovic & Erik ten Hag do to overcome their respective 'identity crisis' issues. Deepanraj Ganesan & Zia-ul Raushan take a deep dive on Sp...

Having gone from winning 3 Singapore Premier League titles in the last 4 years, to winning just 3 matches in their opening 12 league games of 2024 - the new season has been quite the reality check for Albirex Niigata. Why has it seeming all gone wrong? And why did coach Kazuaki Yoshinaga pay the ultimate price for the White Swan's struggles? Club captain Ho Wai Loon spills the beans on Sports Minu...

You'd think spending in excess of ONE BILLION pounds would be a foolproof way to ensure success for a football club. Evidently not! Case in point: Chelsea - who under the Todd Boehly ownership have splashed the cash to recruit top talents the world over. Yet it hasn't equated to on pitch success. So what has gone wrong, and what needs to be done? We try to make sense of the madness in the company...

Plenty of activity in the sports pages this past weekend, headlined by the international retirement of Singapore goal keeper Hassan Sunny. We hear from the man dubbed Superman as Sports Minutes checks in with Hassan on his decision to call time on his National Team career. And we'll dissect his legacy and the road ahead for the Lions, the Sultan of Selangor Cup & the resumption of the English...

The Cycle of Peace 2024, Singapore's first-ever charity car park race, aims to raise awareness and funds to support Ambulance Wish Singapore's mission of transforming the end-of-life experience for patients with a limited prognosis by fulfilling their final wish. Spearheaded by Grace Young, a former national bowler and three-time Sportswoman of the Year, chairperson of the organising committee tel...

A new beginning beckons for Netball Singapore as they announced the rebranding of its national team to the Singapore Vandas. Ms Jane Ittogi, Singapore's first lady and the wife of President Tharman, was also announced as a patron. So will the new name provide new vigour, as the Vandas prepare to defend their Mirxes Nations Cup title on home soil from 1-7 September? Team co-captains Khor Ting Fang...

Having started the season with just 2 points from their opening six games, Hougang United were under scrutiny for floundering under Marko Kraljević. But after a run of 1 loss in 6 games, and 3 wins in their last 4 - the Cheetahs are suddenly on the prowl - climbing to 5th in the Singapore Premier League standings. What has contributed to their reverse in fortunes? Deepanraj Ganesan weighs in on Sp...

Nur Muhammad Asis became a history maker when he signed a one-year loan deal to join Portugal's Estrela da Amadora. The deal made Asis the FIRST Singaporean to sign a professional contract with a top-flight club in Portugal. Long touted as a prodigious talent, how did the 20-year secured his "dream move" to Europe? And how is he coming to terms with his adventure? Asis joins Sports Minutes from Po...

1 place and 1 point, that is all that separates the top two in the Singapore Premier League - with Tampines Rovers and the Lion City Sailors going toe to toe in their quest to be crowned champions. With Geylang suffering their FIRST loss of the season, is a two-horse race emerging? And which way will the pendulum swing? Deepanraj Ganesan is on the Sports Minutes hot seat to cast his expert gaze! G...

10 matches into the Singapore Premier League season, the contenders are emerging from the pretenders in the quest to be crowned champions. And leading the chasing pack is a Tampines Rovers team that remain unbeaten, and are seemingly growing from strength to strength. So could the stags finally end an 11-year wait for the league title? Syazwan Buhari, goalkeeper and club captain, is certainly bull...

Could Ilhan Fandi’s move to Thailand's BG Pathum and Izwan Mahbud’s return to first team action with the Lion City Sailors spark revivals in their respective careers? And having caught our breaths, we recap and review the goal-fest of a Singapore Premier League weekend that saw 26 goals scored across 4 matches. Got a story to tell? Get in touch with us! raushan@sph.com.sg See omnystudio.com/listen...

Scoring a worldie on your national team debut? Check. Ending a rival team's 2-year long unbeaten streak? Check. Unleash the roar scholarship? Check.  At just 18 years of age, Kyra Elise Taylor already has a stellar list of achievements that maybe the envy of most. Having recently made her international bow for the Lionesses in their 9-0 win over Macau, the sky seems to be the limit for Kyra. She s...

Having capped a stellar 2023 with an historic Asian Games gold, you'd think the 2024 Olympic games would see Singapore's Shanti Pereira scale even greater heights. But it hasn't proved to be as straight forward for the Lion City's sprint queen. Sidelined through an injury in the first half of the year, Shanti's preparations for Paris have been hampered. Nonetheless, buoyed by her recent engagement...

Does the name Firdaus Kassim ring a bell? I’m guessing it does, as he’s the head coach who guided Hougang United to their only piece of silverware to date - and that’s the Singapore Cup in 2022. Since then though, he’s departed the Cheetahs and turned blue! That’s right, he’s recently been appointed as the head coach of the Lion City Sailors U21 team. So what was it about the Sailors project that...

Now you’d think that on a weekend that saw 24 goals across 4 games - football would take centre stage on this episode of Sports Minutes, but alas it’s not…because it was marred by an unsavoury incident - with allegations of racial abuse by fans targeting French forward Salif Cisse emerging.  The two clubs that are involved have since released statements on social media, stating their zero toleranc...

In 2021, Loh Kean Yew garnered the adulation of a nation when he won the BWF World Badminton Championships. Since then, the Singaporean shuttler has clinched three BWF World Tour wins - propelling himself into the public eye with his blend of hunger and humility. So how will he fare at the upcoming Paris Olympics? Sports Minutes checks in with 27-year old to find out how he's preparing for his sec...

A Monday of congratulations and commiserations, as Spain conquered the continent to be crowned champions of Europe while the wait goes on for England as alas, it DIDN’T come home. On today’s Sports Minutes, Zia-ul Raushan speaks to two fans -  Alberto Ramon Siles, a Spanish journalist who hails from Murcia, and Jod Gill, a lifelong England fan and a partner with Deloitte SEA reviewing the final th...

For years, Japanese coach Kazuaki Yoshinaga was synonymous with an all-conquering Albirex Niigata, delivering 4 league titles, 2 Singapore Cups, 1 League Cup, 3 Community Shields in his two stints as head coach at the club. But following a poor start to the 2024/25 season, the defending champions announced on July 13 that they have parted ways with the four-time Coach of the Year by mutual consent...