Skating fun for a good cause

By TANZINA RAHMAN

CHILDREN from Shugun Primary School in Singapore came all the way from the island republic to join Guinness world record holder Khoo Swee Chiow at a charity event in Putrajaya on Saturday.

“Swee Chiow is the skate hero and an idol among the pupils,” explained Shugun Primary School physical education department head Phillip Low.

Khoo, who is on a 6,000km journey on skates from Vietnam to Singapore, had broken the record for the World’s Longest Journey on Skates on Dec 24 last year, and the pupils were there to celebrate his achievement and cheer him on.

Nevertheless, Khoo took time off during the last lap of his journey – from Malaysia to Singapore – to take part in the Saturday Night Skate (SNS) event to raise funds for United Voice, an organisation that promotes self-advocacy for people with learning disabilities.

Those who turned up at the event were invited to skate and donate RM10 to the charity.

Most of the participants were youngsters, who looked like they were having the time of their lives!

“Community building is the focus of the event. We chose to aid United Voice because the organisation empowers the disabled by helping them acquire vocational skills, thus enabling them to take charge of their own lives,” said Eusoffe Chua, managing director of Skateline Malaysia Sdn Bhd, which sponsored and organised the event.

For those who dream of skating like Khoo and perhaps even attempting a record but have never put on a skate, all is not lost. The skills can be acquired in less than three months, said Eusoffe.

“Our instructors are fully trained and certified and can teach the skating skills and techniques you need for your skating adventure in just three weeks. And, in the first lesson, you will be actually be taught how to fall so that you can conquer your fear of falling and learn the safety precautions as well,” said Eusoffe.

Paris is well known for hosting the largest street skating events while London also hosts active street skating events on Friday nights (known as FNS), and it is road skating events like these that inspired Eusoffe to organise the Saturday Night Skate event.

And, he plans to take skating to another level by organising a Kuala Lumpur Street skating event at which all skaters will have the opportunity to skate on the streets of KL.