Post by Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS)

From no pathway to parafencing in motion. For 41 years, Singapore has never fielded a wheelchair fencer. Alvin Teo, a Year 1 student and former SEA Games medallist, set out to change that. He piloted a seated fencing programme at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, adapting the sport for rehabilitation patients. “The hardest part was getting people to try. Once they did, things started to shift,” he shares. Participants who were initially hesitant began encouraging one another. Some stepped forward to guide their peers, turning participation into something more. The initiative has since secured $180,000 under the Inclusive Sport Enabling Sports Fund and is now being brought into more settings across the community and rehabilitation space. Because access to sport does not begin at the competition level. It begins with creating a way in.