For his sheer will and determination, para-table tennis player Jason Chee was named the 2017 Straits Times Athlete of the Year yesterday in a ceremony at the Mandarin Orchard Singapore hotel.
The 35-year-old navy regular, who lost both legs, his left arm and three fingers on his right hand in a naval accident in 2012, won a gold medal in the men's singles Class 2 event at last year's Asean Para Games just four months after losing his right eye to cancer.
"I am very happy to win on my 'debut'... I have my own core values - determination, perseverance and fighting spirit - these three mean a lot to me," said the first-time nominee for the award.
Yesterday's ceremony also honoured, for the first time, the ST Young Athlete of the Year, with the award going to former Meridian Junior College footballer Justin Hui for captaining his school to the Schools National A Division boys' football championship.
Now 20 and playing for Hougang United in the S-League, he scored a hat-trick in last year's 3-1 final win over Victoria Junior College.
