Singapore – A total of sixteen ladies took part in the Great Eastern – NUS 10 Ball Invitational 2012 pool tournament with their team last month. This is twice the number of ladies we had in another 8-ball tournament organized three years ago.
These sixteen ladies were part of the 64 tertiary students invited to play in this annual interschool team tournament organized by the NUS Cuesports Club.
Among the various Universities and Polytechnics that were invited, SP Team 1 remained the only unbeaten team of the day, fighting through the winners’ group to clinch first place.
Team 1)
NUS Team 1 lost their second match but fought their way from the losers’ bracket to the second place. This was in part due to their decision to change their strategy and place their sole female player in the singles.
As one of the female competing in this male dominated sport, Nic-cole Chia (谢恩丽) from Singapore Polytechnic (the winning team) believes that gender is not an issue at all. “I feel that females have the ability to do as well as the opposite sex in this sport. Determination and strive is what counts the most.”
“Winning this tournament was definitely a joyous experience, and only achievable through great teamwork”, she added.
While most of the participants were amateurs, there were a handful of professional players competing in the tournament. This includes a number of ladies who are currently in the Youth and Women’s Development Team and an ex-national team player.
I feel that females have the ability to do as well as the opposite sex in this sport. Determination and strive is what counts the most.
When asked on the reason behind the organization of this tournament, Projects Director of the NUS Cuesports Club, Amanda Tan (陈辉琳) mentioned that it was the perceptions of her relatives that motivated her.
“Many of my relatives aren’t supportive of me playing pool as they perceive that it is a sport that is unladylike. That’s when I realized that many people still stigmatize pool as a sport that is played by delinquents, something that was extremely prevalent many years ago. I wanted to show them how pool has changed over the years.
The event, proudly sponsored by Great Eastern, West Coast Billiard Saloon, JP Pepperdine, PUB and Wiraka, was a huge success with the top three winning teams walking away with close to $600 of cash prizes.
All photo credited to NUS Cuesports Club:
