Grooming Climbers

 

In 2001, when preparing for the alpine ascent of Mount Xixabangma, Robert lamented the scarcity of experienced mountaineers who could join the team. The number of serious mountaineers in Singapore could be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Passionate about the sport and eager to promote it, Robert and his team mates launched a student mountaineering programme at the National University of Singapore. It was named the Make It Real programme as it helped underegraduates to make their dream of climbing mountains a reality.

Now into its sixth year, its success can be measured by the increasing number of young mountaineers.

The programme also inspired the univeristy to appoint the Singapore Mountaineers team to train and direct a group of university staff, alumni and students to climb Everest in 2005 to mark its centennial.The NUS Centennial Everest Expedition was a resounding success, putting three climbers on the summit, one of whom was the first Singaporean to do so.

 

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