Singaporean athletes at World Masters Games prove age is no barrier to fitness

SINGAPORE – For Cassandra Chew, sport has always been about more than just fitness and medals.

As a child who frequently fell ill with high fever, she found a surprising remedy in running, which sparked a lifelong connection with sports.

Though she gave it up after completing her O levels, Chew returned to competitive sport in 2017. She took on her first Spartan race with her cousins, marking the beginning of a new chapter that saw her competing locally and overseas.

More recently, she has rediscovered her first love.

Running has not only connected her with a community of like-minded individuals, but also helped her face life’s challenges.

At the World Masters Games in Taipei and New Taipei last week, the 49-year-old won gold in the 100m and 200m in the 45+ age group.

She said: “I draw a lot of positivity from sports. When you work out, you feel happy and, when you feel happy, you feel happy to get back to work and all that.

“I try to spread positivity through my sports. It’s a much bigger picture and motivating others is very important and it helps connect with a lot of like-minded people.”

At Banqiao Stadium in New Taipei, Chew clocked a masters women’s 45+ national record of 13.90 seconds in the 100m, ahead of Hong Kong’s Yuen Ting Cheng (16.09) and Chinese Taipei’s Yu Chen-yu (16.19).

In the 200m, she claimed gold in 30.02sec, with Hong Kong’s Joyce Wong (33.67) and Yuen (43.26) rounding out the podium.

The television producer, who was also part of the team who clinched silver in the 4x100m relay, contributed two of Singapore’s tally of seven golds, three silvers, and nine bronzes in athletics at the May 17-30 quadrennial, multi-sport event, which featured over 30,000 athletes.

Other sports that Singaporeans participated