Ray finally wins Sandakan’s most anticipated singing contest
SANDAKAN: The annual Children Chinese Singing Competition organised by the Sandakan Teo Chew Association Youth and Women is one of the most anticipated events by parents with children who love singing.
Irene Wong Aye Leng said she spent almost RM600 preparing for her eight-year-old son Ray Chin Rui and daughter Cynthia Chin Yue Shuang, seven, for the competition which they had been participating since three years ago.
Ray got second place during the competition held at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel last year. He took part in another competition this year which was held last Saturday at Yu Yuan Secondary School Hall and he finally won.
In preparing for the competition, Ray attended singing classes three times a week.
Irene said Ray never complained that he was tired from practising because he loved the stage too much.
“Ray loves the stage. Since at a very young age he had been looking at people singing on stage and telling me that he wanted to be up there. Seeing his passion in singing, I enrolled him to a professional singing class when he was five years old.
“When he was six years old, he entered his first singing competition outside of school, which was organised by the Teo Chew Association Youth and Women wings. He got fifth place that year. He had been joining the competition ever since, and achieved better and better results every year, until he won the competition this year,” Irene said.
She encouraged parents to explore and develop the talents of their children according to their passion and interests.
“I never force my child to follow any competition. I only support them because they love it. I also never demand for them to win a competition, but I encourage competitive spirit in a competition so that they know that it is okay to lose, and a lot of sacrifices and efforts need to be put in order to win a competition,” she added.
Meanwhile, the Children Chinese Singing Competition held last Saturday night was participated by 40 selected primary school students from various Chinese primary schools in Sandakan. Participants were divided into four groups according to age and the winner and first runner-up of the groups will be representing Sandakan in the state-level Children Chinese Singing Competition organised by the Sabah Teo Chew Association on November 25 in Labuan.
Winners of the competition who will be representing Sandakan included Lau Yi Qing, six, and Eugenia Thien, four, for Group A; Ray Chin Rui, eight, and Isaac Chin Tshun Hee for Group B; Felix Vun, nine, and Tang Yee Kit, 10, for Group C and Isaac Thien, 12, and Chloe Tam, 11, for Group D.
According to the guest of honour of the night, Kok Tsui Yee who is the former deputy president of the Teo Chew Association representing Datuk Seri Panglima Edward Khoo Keok Hai, the competition aims to serve as the best platform in Sandakan for the Chinese speaking children in Sandakan to develop their singing talents.
He said that the competition had produced many singers who have become singing instructor and even professional performers at a national stage, and hoped that it will be continued as an annual event of the association.