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FAST
SINGAPORE: Every Saturday afternoon, quadruple amputee and para-athlete Tan Whee Boon manoeuvres carefully into a dragon boat as volunteers on either side steady the hull.
A customised seat supports his body, while straps secure him in place. His oar is fitted with an attachment designed to work without hands, and a volunteer paddles beside him as a coach counts out strokes.
It is a setup that reflects how much must go right for the 60-year-old to be there — and not only him but a team of more than 30 dragon boat paddlers with significant physical impairments.
“The first thought that came to me was, this is going to be so dangerous,” said Isaac Tan, a physiotherapist overseeing their safety.
Dragon boat racing demands coordination, power and balance. Paddlers sit inches apart in a long, unstable vessel, using their legs and their core to drive their movements while moving in close synchrony.
Tan Whee Boon paddling in sync with the other crew members.
Falling into the water is a risk even for experienced athletes, making the sport especially challenging for people who have lost limbs or who live with neurological impairments.
That is precisely what drew Tan Whee Boon to the sport.
Over the years, he had tried activities like wheelchair rugby and scuba diving. But dragon boat stood out as the “biggest challenge” he wanted to take on, because the sport had never been adapted for people with disabilities like his.
He began asking practical questions. How would he sit securely in the boat? And how would he paddle?
Those questions later shaped the Alita Initiative, a non-profit group he co-founded in 2019 to make dragon boat accessible to persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Singapore.
The group’s name comes from the film, Alita: Battle Angel, in which a cyborg is rebuilt and enabled to thrive through the determination and ingenuity of a doctor working with limited tools.
The name — pronounced “a little” — also reflects how the initiative began: as a small, ground-up effort run by volunteers and supported through goodwill, said secretary general and head coach Chua Lee-Kuen, 48.
CNA Insider followed the team to see how para-athletes, engineering graduates, a clinician and volunteers adapted equipment and included safeguards for people with physical disabilities to take part in a sport long considered out of their reach.
When the Alita Initiative began exploring dragon boat, one constraint was clear: There was nothing to buy. Unlike some para sports, dragon boat had no commercially available adaptive equipment.
WATCH: Can amputees race dragon boats? How young engineers and scientists made it come true (9:02)
Seats, paddle attachments and stabilising systems all had to be designed from scratch — so Alita reached out to local universities, and engineering students from the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) answered the call.
“Let’s come up with the very first prototype, no matter how crude … (and) give it a shot,” was the brief Chua gave them.
The ex-national dragon boat paddler worked alongside them, also drawing on her background in biomechanics to help them think through what would work for those with physical disabilities.
One of the first issues was stabilisation. In a standard dragon boat, paddlers use their legs to anchor themselves while paddling. Those without lower limbs or with impaired muscle control after a stroke will not have that anchor point.
Tan Whee Boon lost his limbs after food poisoning from eating raw fish porridge.
Using participants’ prosthetic limbs was ruled out early, as they were costly and unsuitable for prolonged use in water.
So the students experimented with seating systems made from everyday materials. Their first prototype used polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes and foam padding cut from yoga mats, costing less than S$100.
The design allowed Tan and another amputee to paddle a dragon boat for the first time. But it was bulky and heavy, and the PVC tubing heated up quickly under the sun.
“I was amazed that somehow it worked,” said Tom Piccio, 23, an SUTD graduate in engineering product development. He could see, however, that the amputee paddlers were “not really that comfortable”.
With constant testing and feedback, the designs evolved. Rigid frames were replaced with fabric-covered seats inspired by camping chairs and hammocks, while adjustable straps allowed paddlers to fine-tune their positioning.
Quadruple amputee Lim Ai Reen, 38, using the fabric-covered seat to anchor herself in the boat.
Piccio even learnt to sew to reduce the weight of the “very chunky” prototype seats and increase comfort.
As the seating system improved, attention turned to paddle attachments. For paddlers who have lost upper limbs or hands, early 3D-printed custom designs such as ball-and-socket joints — meant to replicate wrist movement — proved difficult to control.
But progress came when the para-athletes pitched their ideas. Drawing on his experience in wheelchair rugby, Tan Whee Boon sketched out ideas that led to a trapezoid-shaped attachment offering greater freedom of movement while reducing strain.
Seeing his feedback being translated into new working models kept him engaged in the process. “That made me feel very, very happy to continue (giving) feedback,” he said.
The adaptive paddle required multiple iterations.
Adjustments are still being made to accommodate differences in limb loss, strength and control. Tan Whee Boon has also asked for a more portable seat with fewer metal parts.
“We’re not only designing for them,” said Stephanie Loy, 22, another SUTD graduate in engineering product development, “we’re designing with them.”
But designing adaptive equipment is only part of the challenge. Dragon boat racing remains a high-risk sport for people with complex medical histories.
That is why Isaac Tan, who is also a research fellow at the Rehabilitation Research Institute of Singapore, screens participants before they are allowed in the boat.
Besides amputation or a stroke, he considers other medical conditions such as diabetes that could affect a paddler’s safety on the water.
He keeps a particularly close watch on stroke survivors, whose physical condition can be unpredictable. Weakness, stiffness or reduced control on one side of the body can vary from day to day. Fear can cause muscles to freeze up.
Dr Isaac Tan assessing stroke survivor Carine Chia’s condition before they head to the water.
That was what happened in stroke survivor Carine Chia’s first attempt at getting in a dragon boat. Her weakened left side froze because she was “very fearful.” The 46-year-old recalled: “I needed someone to move my leg in.”
For safety, a raised platform is placed beside the boat, allowing paddlers to sit at a similar height before they get in with assistance.
Each session will have roughly two volunteers for every paddler with disabilities, and there is a volunteer paddling beside each participant. Training is broken up into short segments with frequent breaks to account for different fitness levels and medical needs.
And when the water gets choppy, there is little that someone like Chia can do except rely on the people around her.
Chia paddling while supported by volunteer Eric Song, 57.
“The volunteers beside me will give me support, to calm me down,” she said, adding that they offer their hand to steady her.
Non-swimmers like her will be attending a water safety programme starting next month.
Sponsored by OCBC and run by the Singapore Disability Sports Council (SDSC), the OCBC-SDSC Swim Together programme focuses on building water confidence and basic swimming skills for people with disabilities.
It was Alita’s layers of support that gave Chia the confidence to sign up in the first place, and it is also what keeps her coming back. “That’s why I feel safe taking part in this sport,” she said.
As dragon boat paddling became safer and more accessible for Alita’s participants, its impact began to extend beyond the joy of taking part in the sport.
For stroke survivor Maya Seah, 45, the training sessions have had a therapeutic effect. Seah, who uses a wheelchair and whose right side is weak, joined Alita with decreased shoulder movement and low confidence.
Maya Seah using a raised platform to manoeuvre into the dragon boat.
At first, she could manage only a limited range of motion and was unable to lift her arms over her head. After months of training, she managed to raise both arms into what paddlers call the “paddles up” position.
Chua, who was there to see it, said: “It was a very, very special day that I don’t think I’ll ever forget.”
Seah shared her reflections via text message as her speech is also affected by her stroke. She described the moment as one filled with “disbelief and pride”.
“It was a small movement to others, but to me it meant progress, hope and the return of control over my body,” she wrote.
The sessions have also helped her to improve her balance. “I’m more willing to challenge myself physically,” she told CNA Insider. “I trust my body more than before, and that trust has carried over into daily activities, not just training.”
Seah said she is now “moving forward” after suffering a stroke in 2017.
For her fellow stroke survivor, Chia, the sport has brought back a familiar feeling. She used to enjoy fast boats, but after her stroke, even being on the water became difficult.
“(It’s) like I’m getting (rid of) one fear,” she said. “I’m getting back some parts of me (from) before my stroke.”
Training alongside stroke survivors like her has changed how Tan Whee Boon paddles as part of the team. Working with people who have different rhythms, he said, has taught him to be more patient and adaptable.
That more people with disabilities are stepping forward to try the sport is also meaningful to him.
“A lot of PWDs make a lot of friends in these sport sessions,” he said, observing that paddlers who were once “lone rangers” now meet up for meals and outings.
The Alita Initiative dragon boat team. (Photo: Alita Initiative)
Today, the Alita team has more than 30 regular para-athlete members, supported by more than 200 volunteers.
With an SG Enable grant for this year and next, they are working with professional designers to refine their adaptive equipment while continuing to collaborate with engineering students to develop and test more prototypes.
Having already participated in Pesta Sukan 2024, a national sports festival with a para dragon boat category, the team is now aiming to compete in this year’s Pesta Sukan.
It is a dragon boat team that is ultimately made possible by the collective effort of the para-athletes and volunteers, each bringing their own experiences and learning from one another.
The result is simple. “I didn’t feel defined by (my) disability,” said Seah. “I felt like a paddler.”
Source: CNA/dp
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FAST
SINGAPORE: Every Saturday afternoon, quadruple amputee and para-athlete Tan Whee Boon manoeuvres carefully into a dragon boat as volunteers on either side steady the hull.
A customised seat supports his body, while straps secure him in place. His oar is fitted with an attachment designed to work without hands, and a volunteer paddles beside him as a coach counts out strokes.
It is a setup that reflects how much must go right for the 60-year-old to be there — and not only him but a team of more than 30 dragon boat paddlers with significant physical impairments.
“The first thought that came to me was, this is going to be so dangerous,” said Isaac Tan, a physiotherapist overseeing their safety.
Dragon boat racing demands coordination, power and balance. Paddlers sit inches apart in a long, unstable vessel, using their legs and their core to drive their movements while moving in close synchrony.
Tan Whee Boon paddling in sync with the other crew members.
Falling into the water is a risk even for experienced athletes, making the sport especially challenging for people who have lost limbs or who live with neurological impairments.
That is precisely what drew Tan Whee Boon to the sport.
Over the years, he had tried activities like wheelchair rugby and scuba diving. But dragon boat stood out as the “biggest challenge” he wanted to take on, because the sport had never been adapted for people with disabilities like his.
He began asking practical questions. How would he sit securely in the boat? And how would he paddle?
Those questions later shaped the Alita Initiative, a non-profit group he co-founded in 2019 to make dragon boat accessible to persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Singapore.
Related stories:
The group’s name comes from the film, Alita: Battle Angel, in which a cyborg is rebuilt and enabled to thrive through the determination and ingenuity of a doctor working with limited tools.
The name — pronounced “a little” — also reflects how the initiative began: as a small, ground-up effort run by volunteers and supported through goodwill, said secretary general and head coach Chua Lee-Kuen, 48.
CNA Insider followed the team to see how para-athletes, engineering graduates, a clinician and volunteers adapted equipment and included safeguards for people with physical disabilities to take part in a sport long considered out of their reach.
DESIGNING WHAT DID NOT EXIST
When the Alita Initiative began exploring dragon boat, one constraint was clear: There was nothing to buy. Unlike some para sports, dragon boat had no commercially available adaptive equipment.
WATCH: Can amputees race dragon boats? How young engineers and scientists made it come true (9:02)
Seats, paddle attachments and stabilising systems all had to be designed from scratch — so Alita reached out to local universities, and engineering students from the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) answered the call.
“Let’s come up with the very first prototype, no matter how crude … (and) give it a shot,” was the brief Chua gave them.
The ex-national dragon boat paddler worked alongside them, also drawing on her background in biomechanics to help them think through what would work for those with physical disabilities.
One of the first issues was stabilisation. In a standard dragon boat, paddlers use their legs to anchor themselves while paddling. Those without lower limbs or with impaired muscle control after a stroke will not have that anchor point.
Tan Whee Boon lost his limbs after food poisoning from eating raw fish porridge.
Using participants’ prosthetic limbs was ruled out early, as they were costly and unsuitable for prolonged use in water.
So the students experimented with seating systems made from everyday materials. Their first prototype used polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes and foam padding cut from yoga mats, costing less than S$100.
The design allowed Tan and another amputee to paddle a dragon boat for the first time. But it was bulky and heavy, and the PVC tubing heated up quickly under the sun.
“I was amazed that somehow it worked,” said Tom Piccio, 23, an SUTD graduate in engineering product development. He could see, however, that the amputee paddlers were “not really that comfortable”.
With constant testing and feedback, the designs evolved. Rigid frames were replaced with fabric-covered seats inspired by camping chairs and hammocks, while adjustable straps allowed paddlers to fine-tune their positioning.
Quadruple amputee Lim Ai Reen, 38, using the fabric-covered seat to anchor herself in the boat.
Piccio even learnt to sew to reduce the weight of the “very chunky” prototype seats and increase comfort.
As the seating system improved, attention turned to paddle attachments. For paddlers who have lost upper limbs or hands, early 3D-printed custom designs such as ball-and-socket joints — meant to replicate wrist movement — proved difficult to control.
But progress came when the para-athletes pitched their ideas. Drawing on his experience in wheelchair rugby, Tan Whee Boon sketched out ideas that led to a trapezoid-shaped attachment offering greater freedom of movement while reducing strain.
Seeing his feedback being translated into new working models kept him engaged in the process. “That made me feel very, very happy to continue (giving) feedback,” he said.
The adaptive paddle required multiple iterations.
Adjustments are still being made to accommodate differences in limb loss, strength and control. Tan Whee Boon has also asked for a more portable seat with fewer metal parts.
“We’re not only designing for them,” said Stephanie Loy, 22, another SUTD graduate in engineering product development, “we’re designing with them.”
MAKING SAFETY NON-NEGOTIABLE
But designing adaptive equipment is only part of the challenge. Dragon boat racing remains a high-risk sport for people with complex medical histories.
That is why Isaac Tan, who is also a research fellow at the Rehabilitation Research Institute of Singapore, screens participants before they are allowed in the boat.
Besides amputation or a stroke, he considers other medical conditions such as diabetes that could affect a paddler’s safety on the water.
He keeps a particularly close watch on stroke survivors, whose physical condition can be unpredictable. Weakness, stiffness or reduced control on one side of the body can vary from day to day. Fear can cause muscles to freeze up.
Dr Isaac Tan assessing stroke survivor Carine Chia’s condition before they head to the water.
That was what happened in stroke survivor Carine Chia’s first attempt at getting in a dragon boat. Her weakened left side froze because she was “very fearful.” The 46-year-old recalled: “I needed someone to move my leg in.”
For safety, a raised platform is placed beside the boat, allowing paddlers to sit at a similar height before they get in with assistance.
Each session will have roughly two volunteers for every paddler with disabilities, and there is a volunteer paddling beside each participant. Training is broken up into short segments with frequent breaks to account for different fitness levels and medical needs.
And when the water gets choppy, there is little that someone like Chia can do except rely on the people around her.
Chia paddling while supported by volunteer Eric Song, 57.
“The volunteers beside me will give me support, to calm me down,” she said, adding that they offer their hand to steady her.
Non-swimmers like her will be attending a water safety programme starting next month.
Sponsored by OCBC and run by the Singapore Disability Sports Council (SDSC), the OCBC-SDSC Swim Together programme focuses on building water confidence and basic swimming skills for people with disabilities.
It was Alita’s layers of support that gave Chia the confidence to sign up in the first place, and it is also what keeps her coming back. “That’s why I feel safe taking part in this sport,” she said.
GROWTH, JOY AND WHAT COMES NEXT
As dragon boat paddling became safer and more accessible for Alita’s participants, its impact began to extend beyond the joy of taking part in the sport.
For stroke survivor Maya Seah, 45, the training sessions have had a therapeutic effect. Seah, who uses a wheelchair and whose right side is weak, joined Alita with decreased shoulder movement and low confidence.
Maya Seah using a raised platform to manoeuvre into the dragon boat.
At first, she could manage only a limited range of motion and was unable to lift her arms over her head. After months of training, she managed to raise both arms into what paddlers call the “paddles up” position.
Chua, who was there to see it, said: “It was a very, very special day that I don’t think I’ll ever forget.”
Seah shared her reflections via text message as her speech is also affected by her stroke. She described the moment as one filled with “disbelief and pride”.
“It was a small movement to others, but to me it meant progress, hope and the return of control over my body,” she wrote.
The sessions have also helped her to improve her balance. “I’m more willing to challenge myself physically,” she told CNA Insider. “I trust my body more than before, and that trust has carried over into daily activities, not just training.”
Seah said she is now “moving forward” after suffering a stroke in 2017.
For her fellow stroke survivor, Chia, the sport has brought back a familiar feeling. She used to enjoy fast boats, but after her stroke, even being on the water became difficult.
“(It’s) like I’m getting (rid of) one fear,” she said. “I’m getting back some parts of me (from) before my stroke.”
Training alongside stroke survivors like her has changed how Tan Whee Boon paddles as part of the team. Working with people who have different rhythms, he said, has taught him to be more patient and adaptable.
That more people with disabilities are stepping forward to try the sport is also meaningful to him.
“A lot of PWDs make a lot of friends in these sport sessions,” he said, observing that paddlers who were once “lone rangers” now meet up for meals and outings.
The Alita Initiative dragon boat team. (Photo: Alita Initiative)
Today, the Alita team has more than 30 regular para-athlete members, supported by more than 200 volunteers.
With an SG Enable grant for this year and next, they are working with professional designers to refine their adaptive equipment while continuing to collaborate with engineering students to develop and test more prototypes.
Having already participated in Pesta Sukan 2024, a national sports festival with a para dragon boat category, the team is now aiming to compete in this year’s Pesta Sukan.
It is a dragon boat team that is ultimately made possible by the collective effort of the para-athletes and volunteers, each bringing their own experiences and learning from one another.
The result is simple. “I didn’t feel defined by (my) disability,” said Seah. “I felt like a paddler.”
You may also like:
Source: CNA/dp
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CNA's best current affairs documentaries with a deeper look at issues affecting Asia, sent to your inbox weekly.
Newsletter
Recommended Read
Subscribe to CNA's Recommended Read
A single handpicked story that we think you shouldn't miss. Just one a day.
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Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
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