lack of preparation and training contributed to last November's tragic accident in Cambodia of the Singapore National Dragon Boat Team
- From: Chim <ChimS1@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 30 May 2008 00:39:56 -0700 (PDT)
May 30, 2008
Dragon boat team which lost 5 rowers encountered strong current during
race
This and other factors including lack of preparation and training
contributed to last November's tragic accident in Cambodia.
By Judith Tan
THE Singapore National Dragon Boat Team which lost five rowers in last
November's Cambodian race said the Tonle Sap river in Phnom Penh was
the 'most difficult' they had ever encountered.
They only found out about the 'challenging conditions' of the river
when they arrived in Cambodia one day before the race. Even members of
the Philippines team found it so and had warned them about the
conditions of the Tonle Sap, which means Great Lake.
The 22 rowers were unaware that the river flow during the annual Water
Festival, which is held every November, was at its strongest around
that time of the year.
During the practice and the race, the Singapore team found the current
'exceptionally strong,' said the report released by the inquiry panel
on Friday, six months after the tragic incident which claimed the
lives of five young rowers - Mr Stephen Loh, 31, Mr Reuben Kee, 23, Mr
Poh Boon San, 27, Mr Jeremy Goh, 24, and Mr Chee Wei Cheng, 20. They
were seated in the front of the dragon boat, which capsized as the
team was docking, and sank.
The fact-finding team, who went to Phnom Penh in December, was told by
the authorities that the current of the river on race day - Nov 23 -
was about three knots.
But when measured by Singapore Navy divers the next day, using
technical equipment, it was eight knots.
'Many of the rowers stated that the conditions were the most difficult
they had ever encountered,' said the 19-page report which was released
by the seven-member inquiry panel, chaired by Brigadier-General Tan
Kok Kiang.
The report said the team was well-trained and had taken part in three
overseas races before the Cambodian event, even though some of the
rowers were new and were recruited from various associations in
Singapore.
The panel found no single cause for the five paddlers' deaths.
It highlighted several contributing factors to the freak accident,
which included the team's unfamiliarity with the race, the race site
and equipment provided; low safety awareness of both the team and the
organisers; and the lack of information about the event, and
conditions of the Tonle Sap river.
The panel concluded that the team 'was not as well prepared for the
race as they would have liked.'
Late decision to take part in race due to funding
This was partly due to the late confirmation that it would be taking
part in the race - the rowers only knew about it in October. The late
decision was because the funds came at the last minute.
It left the rowers with just over a month to train. Even then, due to
various commitments, the team practised only three to five times a
week, instead of six times a week when they were preparing for the SEA
Games, at which they failed to qualify in the time trials.
'The time to prepare and train for this event was shorter than what
the team would usually like for international competitions,' said the
inquiry report.
The team was also unsure of the format of the race, as very little
information was made available to them.
'Many of the rowers independently tried to glean information off the
internet but failed to find any meaningful information,' said the
report.
'It was only on the evening of Nov 20, that the team learnt from the
manager that the race distance would be 1.5 km.'
But when the rowers went to the site, they found that the race
distance was actually 1.7 km.
Team left S'pore too late
The panel also found that the team left Singapore too late for the
practice session in Cambodia.
The rowers had originally planned to be in Cambodia a day earlier on
Nov 21 for practice but because not all members could leave then, they
only arrived in Phnom Penh on Nov 22 - 'and too late to practise'.
'This is unusual. It is customary for the team to arrive a day earlier
in overseas competition to familiarise themselves with the race
conditions,' said the panel.
Team did not bring equipment
The panel also noted that the team did not bring any equipment with
them for the race as rowers were told at a briefing that the
Cambodians would be providing the paddles and life jackets. This is
not unusual, said the panel.
The rowers were also not used to the boat and paddles provided by the
Cambodians, which the panel said did not conform to the International
Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) standards.
The panel made the following key recommendations to ensure that the
safety of rowers is not compromised:
Singapore Dragon Boat Association (SDBA) and its affiliates should
only take part in races that comply with the IDBF guidelines for race
organisation, conduct and safety;
SDBA and affiliates should ensure teams comply with IDBF's water
safety policy and safety procedures while training; and
SDBA and affiliates to put in place proper selection and training
system to prepare for races and to set guidelnes for overseas events.
Despite the tragic incident, the inquiry panel reiterated that dragon
boating is a safe sport and there has been no previous known fatality
in Singapore.
This incident is a reminder that even in safe sports, accidents can
and do happen, and safety in sports is not something to be taken
lightly,' it said.
.
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