An Interview with Samantha Koh - 2009 New Balance Real (Women Junior Winner)

The Formidable Captain - Samantha Koh of Hwa Chong Institution (College)

Samantha achieved her greatness by demonstrating that she is able to come in as the champion in the New Balance Real Run 2009. She was one of the top eight students featured in our Hwa Chong Inst (College) magazine called PANAROMA scoring 8As in the GCE 'A' Levels 2008. Not only she trained the hardest, but she was also the captain of the team who brought our cross country team to great heights. At present she is doing her scholarship studies in Australia in Physiotheraphy. Youngsters could draw inspiration on how to study and train from this RESILIENT captain of Hwa Chong Institution. During a training session even Dr Benedict Tan, three time Sportsman of the Year award winner, was commenting that with her result she could in fact take up Medicine. All the best to her aspiration to be a physiotherapist.

How did you feel when you win the junior women New Balance Real Run 2009?

I was very happy because it wasn't something that I had expected, even though I was secretly hoping that I could come in top 3. It was because I was no longer officially part of the team and had to do a lot of training on my own which required a lot of discipline, I was really very glad that I was able to achieve something in that season. the feeling of winning something was also very sweet :)

Are you satisfied with the race?

Yes, absolutely :)

Year before last year, you ran the Nat Sch Track and Field meet, how do you
feel about your position in the events that you participated in?

I got 2nd for both my events and I was happy with this results as it is the best I've ever achieved after running track and field for five years. I also got personal best (PBs) times in both my events and that made it even better. PBs are always satisfying because it shows that I have improved and bettered myself! We cannot control what others do or how fast others run but we should always seek to get faster and improve. It was a great ending to my season as a runner in Hwa Chong. I will never forget this track and field season! :)


Even though I lost to the same girl twice for both events, I had done all I could and I have no regrets. :)

Which race do you consider the most memorable one?

The most memorable race will be the 1500m race in J2 because it was the race where I put on a late surge in the last 100m and almost won the gold medal but in the end the gold medal and Asean Girls Track and Field place was lost by a mere 0.04s. It was very painful but also the most memorable race as I know I had given it my all .

Which race do you consider the toughest?

erm.. I would say that the toughest race would be cross country 2009 at botanic gardens? it was a race that the whole team was going for and we really wanted the team championships. Aslo, we had not raced against the other runners before that we didnt really know what standard the other runners were at. We just had to go in to the race knowing our own targets and race plans. Cross country is always tougher for me because it is harder to control the 'pace' and the timing for each part of the race as compared to track ... but what helped was that one of my teammates was running together with me and we worked together to push each other on. the last km of the race is very crucial as it is where I have the tendency to give in because of the pain, but that very day all of us pushed ourselves to the end and clinched the victory. It was sweet! (: (:
What advice would you like to give to youngsters who want to win?

Believe in yourself and believe in your coaches and go out there and just go for it! give  your best and whatever the outcome is, dont ever regret :) learn from past races and keep moving on ..

What goes on in your mind before you run the races?
To stay focused, be strong and to just go for it. :)

What do you think about balancing studies and training?

It takes discipline to balance studies and training and one has to know what to prioritize at different times. I think it is also important to know how to use the short breaks and time before training to study as the short time spent here and there would really help in balancing studies and training. Also, it is important to focus on the studying when studying and focus on training when training. :)

How is your training going on for now?

For now, I train with the uq track team twice a week and try to do easy runs on most other days..