'Sometimes I wonder how I did it': These Singapore Sports School students juggled IB exams and SEA Games

SINGAPORE: For most students, International Baccalaureate examinations are demanding enough. For three recently graduated Singapore Sports School (SSP) students, it came alongside the added pressure of preparing to compete at the SEA Games.

“Sometimes I also wonder how I did it,” said SSP student Reyes Loh, reflecting on a year that saw him juggling exam preparation and intense physical training.

Before starting 2025, Loh set two goals for himself.

One was to score at least 40 points in his International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) examinations, and the other to make the triathlon team representing Singapore at the 33rd SEA Games, which were held in Thailand from Dec 9 to 20 last year.

Naturally, that meant having to sacrifice much of his personal and family time over the course of 2025. Through sheer hard work, the 19-year-old ended up achieving both his aims.

"(Halfway through the year, I told) my family that this was going to be one of the most tiring and tough years. It's not easy to juggle," said Loh, who competed in the mixed aquathlon relay at the Games.

Loh is one of the 28 student-athletes from SSP who in December graduated from the IBDP, a through-train pathway offered by the school to support long-term athlete development and provide sustained academic support for student-athletes.

Of the graduating student-athletes, four including Loh, competed at the Games.

The demands placed on student-athletes are neither new nor unexpected, and the balancing act between elite sport and academic rigour is one the public is broadly aware of.

Yet the scale of what these young athletes go through – from early-morning training sessions and long school days to high-stakes international competition and major examinations – is