Joscelin Yeo
Encyclopedia
Joscelin Yeo Wei Ling (杨玮玲) (born 2 May 1979) is a Nominated Member of Parliament
(NMP) and a former competitive swimmer
from Singapore
. Yeo won 40 gold medals at the Southeast Asian Games
, as well as represented the Republic in the Asian Games
, Commonwealth Games
and Summer Olympics. Yeo was elected as a Rhodes Scholar but never took up the scholarship.
Yeo began her international swimming career at age 11, at the Beijing Asian Games
. Since then, she has swum in every major international meet, including the Southeast Asian Games eight times, the Asian Games four times, the Olympics four times, and the Commonwealth Games three times. She ended her 16-year swimming career in early 2007.
. In the 1994 Hiroshima Asian Games and the 2002 Pusan Asian Games, she won the bronze twice for the 100m Butterfly. She was the only Singapore swimmer to win a medal at both Games. The 2006 Doha Asian Games was her last international competition.
In 1991, Yeo made her SEA Games debut in Manila
as a 12 year old,. She won several silvers and bronzes.
In 1993, with the SEA Games held in Singapore, Yeo won nine gold medals, which included seven individual and two relay races. Throughout the entire Games, she only ever lost one race, the 400 IM to compatriot Ooi Yufen May.
In 1995, in Chiangmai, Yeo also won the same seven individual races as in 1993, but lost out on the two relays. She was also the only gold medallist in the Singapore swimming squad.
In the 1997 Sea Games, besieged by threats of witchcraft and personal illness, Yeo only won three gold medals.
In the 1999 Brunei Games, Yeo won six gold medals, all in SEA Games record time. She was slated for 12 events, but pulled out of the fourth day of competition, due to a right shoulder injury. The only individual race she lost was the 400 Free, where she only managed a bronze, finishing behind Pilin Tachakittiranan of Thailand
and compatriot Bouvron Mei-Yen Christel.
In 2001, Yeo took part in lesser events as compared to previous SEA games. Yeo won three gold medals.
In 2003, Yeo won six gold medals. inclusive of two relay golds. This helped the Singapore women's swim team to clinch their first relay success since 1993.
In 2005, Yeo participated in her last SEA Games in Manila, the same city where she debuted for SEA Games. Yeo won six golds. In the 100 Butterfly, Yeo also finally finished in under one minute, winning the race in 59.91s.
teammates Haley Cope
, Staciana Stitts
and Praphalsai Minpraphal broke the 4x50 Medley Relay (Short-course) World record in 2000 with a time of 1:49.23.
. On 30 January 2007, Yeo announced her retirement at a press conference saying she did not have the motivation to go on with another year of training till Beijing, and retired at 28.
In 2009, Yeo became a non-elected Nominated Member of Parliament
for a term of two-and-a-half years, the youngest of her batch.
She made a cameo appearance in Singapore's MediaCorp TV Channel 5
Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd playing herself, in the eighth season of the show, where the main character challenges her and fails.
On 7 June 2009, Yeo with Canagasabai Kunalan were unveiled as the two deputy mayors of the Youth Olympic Village for the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics
held in Singapore.
. Both are actively involved in the youth ministry of New Creation.
On the 10th of September 2011, Joscelin gave birth to a baby boy.
Nominated Member of Parliament
A Nominated Member of Parliament is a Member of the Parliament of Singapore who is appointed instead of being elected into office by the people, and who does not belong to any political party or represent any constituency. There are currently nine NMPs in Parliament...
(NMP) and a former competitive swimmer
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
from Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. Yeo won 40 gold medals at the Southeast Asian Games
Southeast Asian Games
The Southeast Asian Games , is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 countries of Southeast Asia...
, as well as represented the Republic in the Asian Games
Asian Games
The Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
, Commonwealth Games
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years....
and Summer Olympics. Yeo was elected as a Rhodes Scholar but never took up the scholarship.
Yeo began her international swimming career at age 11, at the Beijing Asian Games
1990 Asian Games
The 11th Asian Games also known as XI Asiad were held from September 22, 1990 to October 7, 1990 in Beijing, China. It was the first large-scale international sports event to be held in the People's Republic of China. A total number of 6,122 athletes, coming from 37 countries, competed in 29 sports...
. Since then, she has swum in every major international meet, including the Southeast Asian Games eight times, the Asian Games four times, the Olympics four times, and the Commonwealth Games three times. She ended her 16-year swimming career in early 2007.
National records
(correct as of 22 August 2009)- 200 m individual medley - 2:16.86, 23 May 2004, 2004 Santa Clara International Swim Meet
Olympics
Yeo competed in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, 1996 Atlanta Olympics, 2000 Sydney Olympics and the 2004 Athens Olympics. Her four Olympics appearances are the most by any Singaporean athlete. Yet, for a swimmer of Yeo's calibre, she never did perform to her best at any of the Olympics. Particularly after the 2000 Sydney Olympics and especially the 2004 Athens Olympics, Joscelin, along with the rest of the Singapore swimming team, were lambasted for their poor performances by the Singaporean media and even their own coaches.Asian Games
Yeo competed in four Asian GamesAsian Games
The Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
. In the 1994 Hiroshima Asian Games and the 2002 Pusan Asian Games, she won the bronze twice for the 100m Butterfly. She was the only Singapore swimmer to win a medal at both Games. The 2006 Doha Asian Games was her last international competition.
SEA Games
Yeo currently hold the record of the most gold medals in SEA Games history with 40 gold medals, surpassing fellow Singaporean swimmer Patricia Chan's record of 39 gold medals. Yeo still holds five SEA Games swimming records.{fact}In 1991, Yeo made her SEA Games debut in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
as a 12 year old,. She won several silvers and bronzes.
In 1993, with the SEA Games held in Singapore, Yeo won nine gold medals, which included seven individual and two relay races. Throughout the entire Games, she only ever lost one race, the 400 IM to compatriot Ooi Yufen May.
In 1995, in Chiangmai, Yeo also won the same seven individual races as in 1993, but lost out on the two relays. She was also the only gold medallist in the Singapore swimming squad.
In the 1997 Sea Games, besieged by threats of witchcraft and personal illness, Yeo only won three gold medals.
In the 1999 Brunei Games, Yeo won six gold medals, all in SEA Games record time. She was slated for 12 events, but pulled out of the fourth day of competition, due to a right shoulder injury. The only individual race she lost was the 400 Free, where she only managed a bronze, finishing behind Pilin Tachakittiranan of Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and compatriot Bouvron Mei-Yen Christel.
In 2001, Yeo took part in lesser events as compared to previous SEA games. Yeo won three gold medals.
In 2003, Yeo won six gold medals. inclusive of two relay golds. This helped the Singapore women's swim team to clinch their first relay success since 1993.
In 2005, Yeo participated in her last SEA Games in Manila, the same city where she debuted for SEA Games. Yeo won six golds. In the 100 Butterfly, Yeo also finally finished in under one minute, winning the race in 59.91s.
World record
Yeo and her University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
teammates Haley Cope
Haley Cope
Haley Clark is a retired American swimmer. She won a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics, eight world championship medals, and held a world record in the 50 metre backstroke....
, Staciana Stitts
Staciana Stitts
Staciana Stitts Winfield is a breaststroke swimmer from the United States. She is a 2000 Summer Olympics and 1999 Pan American Games gold medalist, and 1998 Goodwill Games silver medalist...
and Praphalsai Minpraphal broke the 4x50 Medley Relay (Short-course) World record in 2000 with a time of 1:49.23.
Retirement
Yeo originally wanted to call it a day after the 2005 SEA Games. But after a splendid performance, she decided to continue till the 2008 Beijing Olympics. This decision saw her swim at the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games and the 2006 Asian Games2006 Asian Games
The 15th Asian Games, officially known as the XV Asiad, is Asia's Olympic-style sporting event that was held in Doha, Qatar from December 1 to December 15, 2006. Doha was the first city in its region and only the second in West Asia to host the games...
. On 30 January 2007, Yeo announced her retirement at a press conference saying she did not have the motivation to go on with another year of training till Beijing, and retired at 28.
Accolades
Yeo was awarded Singapore's Sportsgirl of the Year award in 1994, and the Sportswoman of the Year awards in 1993, 1995 and 1999. She was prevented from winning any more due to a rule that stopped athletes from winning more than three times. This rule has since been lifted.Autobiography
In 2004, before the 2004 Athens Olympics, Yeo released her autobiography, titled On the Move: My Career, My Life, which chronicled all the milestones in her life and swimming career, and also nuggets she shared about her national teammates.Post-swimming career
Yeo opened a swim school, called Yeo's Aquatics, along with her elder brother Leonard. She is also actively involved in church work, working as a mentor within the Youth ministry of New Creation Church.In 2009, Yeo became a non-elected Nominated Member of Parliament
Nominated Member of Parliament
A Nominated Member of Parliament is a Member of the Parliament of Singapore who is appointed instead of being elected into office by the people, and who does not belong to any political party or represent any constituency. There are currently nine NMPs in Parliament...
for a term of two-and-a-half years, the youngest of her batch.
She made a cameo appearance in Singapore's MediaCorp TV Channel 5
MediaCorp TV Channel 5
MediaCorp Channel 5 or Channel 5 is a 24-hour free-to-air English and Malay language television channel based in Singapore....
Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd playing herself, in the eighth season of the show, where the main character challenges her and fails.
On 7 June 2009, Yeo with Canagasabai Kunalan were unveiled as the two deputy mayors of the Youth Olympic Village for the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics
2010 Summer Youth Olympics
The 2010 Summer Youth Olympics, officially known as the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games , were an international multi-sport event for youths that took place in the city-state of Singapore from 14 to 26 August 2010, in the XXIX Olympiad. They were the inaugural Summer Youth Olympics, a major...
held in Singapore.
Personal life
Yeo was married to Joseph Christopher Purcell, born 1983, a pastor of New Creation Church in Singapore, on 9 July 2010 in HortParkHortPark
HortPark is a 23-hectare park located in the South-Western part of Singapore. It is the first one-stop gardening lifestyle hub in Asia that integrates a plethora of activities together under one roof in a park setting...
. Both are actively involved in the youth ministry of New Creation.
On the 10th of September 2011, Joscelin gave birth to a baby boy.