Urban Pointillism

This next generation of Singapore’s athletes finds themselves on a progressive path as three young national athletes shine light on finding success and building unique stories of their own.

- Manfred Lu

Feroze Rahman

National Skateboarder

HOW DO YOU USE SKATEBOARDING TO EXPRESS YOURSELF? Skateboarding has been with me through the ups and downs. When I skate it brings me to another world. It blocks all the negativity and brings all the positivity. There’s nothing more satisfying than that feeling of landing a new trick or mastering a trick you’ve been trying for hours.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT OF YOUR CAREER AS A SKATEBOARDER SO FAR? It’s about getting back up when you’re down. One thing I take away from skateboarding is that it teaches you to be resilient. You don’t give up. When you fall seven times, you get back up seven times, even when you’re frustrated from not landing a trick or when you’re injured. That’s one positive that I take away from skateboarding that I apply in my everyday life — and it’s to remind myself to never give up.

NOT MANY WOULD CONSIDER SKATEBOARDING A NATIONAL SPORT, HOW HAS THAT CHANGED SINCE IT WAS FIRST CONTESTED IN 2019 AT THE SEA GAMES? It has changed and it’s had a good reception from the public so far. It has always been outlawed as a sport, so it’s nice to see the change in public perception. You see a lot of kids picking up skateboarding these days but what’s important is that you learn the sport from the right people. It’s an extreme sport, so you’d need to get the right people to teach you.