NEW LOGO AND DIRECTION FOR SAFSA

Soldiers in the 3rd Generation Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) must remain healthy and fighting-fit. Sports and regular exercise not only improve their physical well-being, they also provide opportunities to develop values such as discipline and fighting spirit.

To help soldiers keep fit, the Singapore Armed Forces Sports Association (SAFSA) promotes recreational, competitive sporting and social activities among its members, and supports sporting activities at the national level.

As such, it was only "fit"-ting that the new SAFSA logo was unveiled at the second SAF Commanders' Sports Day held on 17 Apr at the SAFTI Military Institute.

With the theme One SAF - We are One, the annual event saw about 850 members from the Army, Navy and Air Force come together in friendly competition for various games and activities, which included football, golf chipping and a Chain-of-Command relay run.

Officially launched by Chief of Defence Force Lieutenant-General (LG) Desmond Kuek, who is Chairman of the SAFSA Council, the new SAFSA logo features a more modern and streamlined design. The three swathes of colour - red, royal blue and navy blue - in the logo represent the Army, the Air Force and the Navy respectively.

Explaining how the logo launch marks a new direction for SAFSA, Chief of Air Force Major-General Ng Chee Khern said: "The change is intended to mark the beginning of a new journey... Moving forward, SAFSA aims to energise our people towards becoming One SAF, reach out to more people and provide our people with more opportunities to participate in sports."

One new initiative, for instance, is the selection of nine SAFSA core sports: basketball, badminton, cross country, football, swimming, shooting, track and field, table-tennis and triathlon.

"In the past, SAFSA used to support 24 sports. But this was not the best arrangement as there was too much diversity and no particular emphasis. With this in mind, SAFSA has identified certain 'core sports' that we wish to focus on," said MG Ng, who is also Chairman of the SAFSA Management Committee.

These sports were short-listed based on considerations such as popularity levels, emphasis at the national level, and the extent to which they embody the SAF core values, allow mass participation and foster cohesion.

Other new initiatives include the GrandSlam Awards - given to athletes who complete all three SAF signature events like the Singapore Biathlon, National Runway Cycling & Skating, and Army Half Marathon - sponsorship of signature events, and the introduction of awards and badges. All these aim to encourage SAF personnel to take up sports by recognising their sporting achievements.

"One of the new areas of focus for SAFSA is reaching out to more people and better meeting their needs, whether they are sports lovers or less active personnel," said MG Ng.

To create greater sports awareness, SAFSA will also be working to make its presence more strongly felt among servicemen, via greater publicity and active ground engagements, such as dialogue sessions with people in the units.