COVID-19: More than 500 job openings for sports workers affected by pandemic

SINGAPORE — Singapore’s sports governing body Sport Singapore (SportSG) on Monday (30 March) unveiled plans to support those in the sports industry whose livelihoods have been badly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

It has created more than 500 temporary job openings for sports workers, as well as more than 5,000 training vacancies from now until end-2020.

These jobs are geared towards enabling continuing operations and industry development. They include visitor engagement and implementation of COVID-19 measures at ActiveSG centres; virtual fitness content creators and media producers; as well as sports curriculum developers, coaches and active health ambassadors.

SportSG’s training arms ActiveSG Training Centre and CoachSG are offering courses with SkillsFuture funding. These courses cover a range of topics from digital marketing to service excellence, as well as specialised subjects such as sports science. SportSG is working with institutes of higher learning to enhance course delivery and increase training capacity.

Creating a digital “super sports club”

Besides helping sports workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, SportSG is also rethinking its industry ecosystem to better engage the Singapore public in sports activities in the current climate.

With many Singaporeans continuing to stay fit and healthy by exercising outdoors even amid the COVID-19 situation, SportSG is planning to create an online “super sports club” platform, where the public can access workout videos, virtual races and facilities reservations.

This digital platform is still in its early stages of content creation, but SportSG hopes it will eventually allow sports coaches and fitness trainers provide different tiers of sports services to the public.

“The ActiveSG Circle concept opens up more options for Singaporeans to participate in sport in ways they prefer,” SportSG chief executive officer Lim Teck Yin said during a virtual media conference on Monday.

“New technology will be deployed, and new capabilities will be built as we move to bridge physical and virtual sporting experiences.”

Partnering enterprises for GetActive! Singapore

As for sports companies and enterprises, SportSG will partner them to design and organise its annual GetActive! Singapore event together.

Grants and subsidies will be given to partners who can come up with creative ideas for GetActive! Singapore activities. Examples of ideas include virtual run or cycling competitions, and exercises that are distribute across Singapore but linked up to form a single mass participation event.

Lim believes that the disruption caused by COVID-19 to the sports industry can be an opportunity to upskill and invest in capabilities – for workers, for sports enterprises and even for SportSG itself.

“This current situation presents an opportunity to strengthen and transform Sporting Singapore... A transformed industry with capacity and capabilities needed for long-term growth in participation and performance will serve Singapore better,” he said.

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