Wushu athlete Ng Zhe Nin (left) is guided at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games by team manager Vera Tan (right), who is also a current athlete. Photo: OIS/ Remi Vallat
Wushu exponent Vera Tan has mostly been an athlete at the numerous international competitions she has attended, which include multiple editions of the world championships, Asian Games and SEA Games.
Here at the ongoing Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, she is a team manager and coach. And a friend, nutritionist, psychologist and nanny to Ng Zhe Nin, who won the women’s taijiquan combined gold on 3 Nov.
Three-time world champion Tan, who participated in the Nanjing 2014 Games when wushu was a demonstration sport, said with a laugh: “It’s a very different experience being a team manager this time. I monitor what she eats, when she sleeps and little things (like that), because I need to make sure she gets enough sleep. I also check in on her regularly to make sure she’s not feeling too nervous, and I remind her to pack the important things.
“I try to strike a balance (between) being sort of a friend and coach, and act like her mother.”
These efforts have been much appreciated by the 16-year-old Ng, who recalled an instance when she forgot her costume. “(Tan) ran back to take my costume, and she really took care of me throughout these few days,” she added.
Ng copes with pre-competition jitters through laughter, with the process entailing her shrugging her shoulders and literally laughing it out. This method – adopted after she discovered it through an Instagram reel – coupled with Tan’s reassurance proved a winning combination at the Dakar Expo Center this week.
“Vera has taught me a lot. Before I went up to compete, I was failing my jumps and difficulty (in the preparation area). She told me calm down and think of all the good ones that I’ve done, and to just think about all the (key parts of the movement),” said Ng, who is the junior world champion in the girls' youth taijiquan and girls' youth taijijian.
The pair have known each other for about four years. While Tan is not Ng’s main coach, she has had brief stints in coaching the latter in the lead-up to the Games.
Tan, 28, added: “It’s been a pleasure to coach her for the Youth Olympic Games because she’s very determined and hardworking. She balances her academics and her sporting pursuits really well, and I’m really proud of her.”
Tan confessed that she sometimes also feels nervous while watching her charge compete, explaining: “I understand how she feels because I myself am an athlete.”
This shared experience of being a fellow athlete has left Tan impressed with the way her younger compatriot carried herself throughout these Games.
At Dakar 2026, each participant of the taijiquan combined event performed two routines – taijishan and taijiquan in the preliminary round. Scores from both routines were combined to determine final placings. The top eight finishers from the preliminary round progressed to the final, where each athlete performed the same two routines.
This differs from the format of the World Junior Wushu Championships, where each event is contested individually.
“The format for the Youth Olympic Games is quite different from our usual format, and she has to be a lot stronger mentally because she has to do her routines so many times,” said Tan.
“I know how tiring it is when the competition gets stretched out like that, so I admire how she takes things day by day. She just lives in the present and that’s a really good thing.”
The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games takes place from 31 October to 13 November 2026. For the latest Team Singapore coverage and news, follow Team Singapore on their social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) or visit the official Team Singapore website.