Contributed by Edel Mooney

nations cup

(Left to right): Kate Carpenter, National Coach; Cyrus Medora, Executive Director Netball Singapore; Jane Sng, Marketing Manager Netball Singapore; Vanessa Marie Lee, Wing Defense; Seah Kian Peng, CEO (Singapore) of NTUC Fairprice and MP for Marine Parade GRC; Li Ling, national shooter; Chan Pearline, Vice Captain; Jessica Tan, Chairperson for WNC2011 and MP for East Coast GRC; Tan Whee Khim, President of Netball Singapore and Tang Weng Fei, President of Singapore Athletic Association. (Photo courtesy of Edel Mooney)

Singapore, Monday, September 20, 2010 — Netball Singapore today announced that NTUC FairPrice Foundation will be title sponsor for the NTUC FairPrice Foundation Nations Cup 2010. New entrants Namibia, India and Wales will also join Tanzania, Scotland and host Singapore for this year’s tournament at Toa Payoh Sports Hall from 6-12 December.

Celebrating the fifth edition of the tournament, the FairPrice Foundation sponsorship confirms the event as an important highlight on the Singaporean and international netball calendar. The sponsorship deal worth $80,000 will enable Netball Singapore to continue to develop the tournament which has attracted twelve different countries in the past five years.

Mr Seah Kian Peng, CEO (Singapore), NTUC FairPrice said: “FairPrice Foundation is proud to be part of this continuous effort to further develop Singapore’s sporting talents and to promote greater interest in sports. One of FairPrice Foundation’s key thrusts is to promote nation building and community bonding initiatives. Sports is a platform that transcends race and religion, unifies a community, and advances social harmony. We hope that our sponsorship of $80,000 to Netball Singapore, will not only bolster their efforts in bringing netball to greater heights in Singapore, but also contribute as a whole in bringing the community together through sports.”

Each year, the Nations Cup provides competing teams with an important international competition to improve on their respective IFNA world rankings. As Namibia’s first major international competition, the team (currently ranked 24th) will hope to get off to a good start. India (unranked) will bring their experience of hosting the Commonwealth Games to bear and Wales (ranked 17th) will be using the FairPrice Foundation Nations Cup as a training ground ahead of the WNC 2011.

Seasoned competitors Scotland (ranked 16th) and Tanzania (ranked 21st) finished 2nd and 4th respectively in last year’s Nations Cup and will hope to improve their ranking. All eyes will however, be on host, Singapore, who will want to put on a good show in front of fans ahead of the World Netball Championships next year.

Mr Tan Wee Khim, President of Netball Singapore said: “The FairPrice Foundation Nations Cup 2010 has evolved to become an important feature in the international netball calendar. Although this home-grown event is an invitational tournament, it has grown from strength to strength over the past five years. We are very pleased to have secured FairPrice Foundation as the title sponsor for this year’s event.

As a bonus, this year’s competition final will be broadcast live over television for the first time so we have everything to look forward to. It will also serve as a wonderful prelude to the World Netball Championships to be held here next year. “

As host broadcaster for the FairPrice Foundation Nations Cup 2010, ESPN Star Sports will be broadcasting the final live in Singapore and relaying footage across 26 Asian countries. Ms Molly Rhone, President of the International Federation of Netball Associations (IFNA), will also be in Singapore to do the draw for the WNC2011.

Leaving nothing to chance, Netball Singapore has a full programme of talent exchanges, coaching seminars, friendly games and knowledge sharing activities planned in the run up to the event. This week, the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) team is in town and next week Singapore will host the New Zealand Silver Ferns as they stop off en route to the Commonwealth Games.

“With teams from the world’s top two netballing nations visiting in quick succession, we hope to sharpen the National team’s focus and enhance our physical and mental readiness. This year, the FairPrice Foundation Nations Cup will reach out to a wider audience than ever before and it is heartening to have the support of our southern hemisphere colleagues as we enter the final phase of preparations. We also hope to leverage on these opportunities to further develop regional support and recognition for the sport ahead of the World Netball Championships next year,” commented Cyrus Medora, Executive Director of Netball Singapore.