MAN OF THE MATCH

Meet Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Retired (Rtd) Kok Wai Leong, a man who is staying true to his love for sports and is still living the dream as the general manager of the Singapore Armed Forces Football Club (SAFFC).

At the age of 21, LTC (Rtd) Kok Wai Leong represented Singapore in javelin-throwing during the Southeast Asian Peninsular Games or SEAP Games in 1973, the predecessor of the Southeast Asian Games. In the same year, he set the national javelin record at 63.32m. Today, he still holds that record - one which he takes great pride in. "I had the potential and I set the record in 1973 and as far as I know, it hasn't been broken. I was a schoolboys' champion!" he recalled fondly.

However, LTC (Rtd) Kok's career in athletics was short lived despite having achieved such commendable sporting results in his youth. Although he excelled in javelin-throwing, he lacked a coach to show him the way as the sports scene in Singapore was still in its infancy stage back then.

Yet sports remained his passion. Upon enlisting into National Service, he pursued a military career but still made time to participate in sports.

"I continued to throw the javelin for SAFSA (Singapore Armed Forces Sports Association) every year and I was actively playing football, rugby and squash for SAFTI Military Institute (MI)," he said.

LTC (Rtd) Kok embarked on his military career as an instructor at SAFTI MI before joining the 1st Guards Battalion as an infantry officer. Thereafter, in 1980, he joined the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) where he headed the Physical Training and Sports Branch.

Fitness & sports fanatic

A firm believer that fitness is the foundation of a strong army, LTC (Rtd) Kok was part of the pioneering team which revamped the army's fitness model and introduced the Individual Physical Proficiency Test to the military. He felt privileged to have been able to develop programmes to improve the fitness of soldiers.

"I feel very satisfied that I was able to contribute to the Army in an area that I was very comfortable with - fitness," he said.

LTC (Rtd) Kok all smiles with the S-League trophy won by the SAFFC in 1998.

After retiring from the Army, LTC (Rtd) Kok was offered a job as the general manager of the SAFFC in 1998 and he jumped at the opportunity to continue to work in a sports-related profession.

"I was a very active sportsman and the Army offered one of my greatest loves - soldiering. In those days, sports was an integral part of soldiering. I was able to continue with my love for sports then. So the transition from developing fitness and sports programmes for soldiers to managing a football club was very related," he told PIONEER.

Proud to be in the team

Under the leadership and guidance of LTC (Rtd) Kok, the SAFFC has garnered seven S-League championship trophies since he first came on board as the club's general manager in 1998 - with four back-to-back titles from 2006 to 2009.

He attributed the success of the club to teamwork. "I take pride that we work together as a team at SAFFC - this very strong virtue of the SAF has been imbued in all our team players. Although teamwork does not guarantee winning championships, at least we know we are on the right track," said LTC (Rtd) Kok.

Besides managing the daily operations of the club well, LTC (Rtd) Kok sees to the welfare of his football players as he believes that a happy team is a winning team.

"We want to make sure they are well looked after, that they get their salaries on time and are focused on training and the matches," said the avid supporter of Manchester United Football Club.

He likens the running of the SAFFC to that of running a unit in the military. "It's the fighting spirit, the discipline, and the teamwork - that spirit of playing for each other and fighting to the end. They must want to do well. And if you are down, you must get up and continue. It's the determination. So these are all virtues and values of the SAF which are applicable to the club," said the 57-year-old.

Looking to the future

LTC (Rtd) Kok has high hopes for the SAFFC and is optimistic about what the future holds for the club. He has set his sights beyond the S-League and is hopeful that the club will outdo itself.

"In the long term, I'd like to see Singapore football come up to a higher level and be able to compete with the rest of Asia. I relish the experience of having the SAFFC play against teams like Kashima Antlers and Gamba Osaka from Japan because that s when you find out whether you can compete at that level," he said.

While he is proud that the club is now on par or even above the Asean level as the SAFFC has qualified to play in the regional Asian Football Confederation Champions League for two years after defeating other teams from Southeast Asia, LTC (Rtd) Kok believes that the SAFFC is capable of competing on the international stage. "It's not going to be easy, it'll be very challenging, but I have faith in this team," he declared.