Singapore’s Vera Tan and Zeanne Law made their country proud as they both won gold medals at the World Taijiquan Championships held at OCBC Arena. 26-year-old Vera Tan took the top honours in the women’s optional taijijian, with a score of 9.700, while 18-year-old Zeanne Law won the women’s Taijiquan event.
Vera Tan had won the bronze in the women’s optional taijiquan a day earlier and had expressed regret for not smiling more during her routine. However, she made up for it in the final and was quoted by The Straits Times saying, “I tried to smile more today! I was actually more nervous today. I’m not sure why, but I didn’t feel I was in my best form during my warm-up. However, I’m glad I managed to shut off the nerves and perform as I usually do in training.”
Zeanne Law, the 2023 Wushu Taolu Rising Star of the Year, continued her impressive form from the 2023 World Wushu Championships by picking up two medals in the first two days of the competition. Law won the Taijiquan gold ahead of Tan and Brunei’s Basma Lachkar.
In the men’s category, Singapore’s Yeo Jun Wei and Tan En Jie finished first and third respectively in the men’s 42 movements taijijian, while Lim Che How placed second in the men’s chen style taijijian. Although no medals were awarded as these were demonstration routine events.
Despite suffering an injury few days before the competition, Vera Tan managed to compete through it by receiving treatment from a physiotherapist. Preparation for the event included an intensive training camp in China followed by regular mock competitions. Home support also boosted Tan’s performance, as she expressed how “satisfying it is to show our skills to our home crowd, family and friends who rarely get to watch us live in competition.”
Talented and focused, Zeanne Law credited her success to her preparation, attitude, and performance, stating how she concentrated on executing her routine to the best of her ability rather than worrying about external factors like her competitors’ scores and results.
The Singaporean pair’s outstanding performances led to a commendable result showing their dedication and hard work, making Singapore proud.
