Written by Calvin Yang, on Tuesday, 15 May 2007

Published in : Life, Sweat

Come July 2007, a team of girls extremely passionate about inline hockey will be representing Singapore at the FIRS World Championships in Bilbao, Spain.

Just how passionate are they about the sport?

Well, I know of a few hardcore players who were still on the Tampines Millennium Court putting in extra practice even after the lights had been shut off!

What is the attraction of inline hockey that drives this team of 13 girls to save up their money (we are talking about $3000 per player) to play hockey in Spain?

Team member Siyi puts it simply "Inline hockey rocks and I want to be a hockey star!"

Jokes aside, most of the players agree that it is the speed and intensity of the game that creates an adrenaline rush like no other. It is also certainly an honour to represent your country.

If you've never heard of inline hockey before, you're not alone. It is still a relatively young sport, with its popularity starting to gain fast momentum here in Asia.

Most of the residents in Tampines, however, are no strangers to the sport, as it hosts the only purpose-built inline hockey court in Singapore, which is located next to the Tampines Sports Hall.