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For 48 years, Tan Howe Liang held a very special privilege: to be the first and sole Olympic medallist in his country (all sports included)! Born in the Guangdong (China) region in 1933, he was four when his parents decided to move to Singapore. Third of eight siblings, his living conditions were far from ideal and when his father died (Tan was only 14), he was forced to quit school. One day, passing through an amusement park, he saw a weightlifting exhibition and decided to try the sport. It was the right decision, as he proved quite strong and started winning some national titles. In 1956, he qualified for his first Olympic Games: in Melbourne, his performance went unnoticed as he finished ninth. 1958 was a pivotal year for Tan, as he earned two gold medals, at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games. Two years later, at the Rome Olympics, he will enter the Olympic history book of the tiny Asian nation: competing in the 67.5kg category, he lifted 115-110-155-380 and secured the silver medal. It was the first podium presence for Singapore, a feat that will remain unmatched until the national women’s table tennis team also clinched a silver medal at the… 2008 Games in Beijing (since then, four more medals were won by Singaporean athletes). Tan is the only Olympic medallist for Singapore in weightlifting and was an inspirational model for many young athletes practicing the sport. In 1962, he was again the best at the Commonwealth Games. In 1964, in Tokyo, he lifted a total of 400kg, but this outcome is only sufficient for the 11th place. After his retirement, he tried several jobs and businesses but ended up being a weightlifting coach. Tan received the highest accolades in Singapore and passed away at the age of 91, in December 2024.

Photo credit: Singapore National Olympic Council