SINGAPORE: She mothered them through years of hard
training in the pool, the thrill of competition, the pain of
failure and the harsh public scrutiny that came with being one of
Singapore's most bemedalled swim stars.
Madam Tan Lee Choo - mother of former national swimmers Joscelin
and Leonard Yeo, and former national triathlete Gerard Yeo - was a
pillar of strength to her children, and a source of unconditional
love no matter how rough things got.
But in the last two years, as she fought her battle with a
stage-four brain tumour, it was her children who found themselves
trying to be all that to her.
"This whole time, Joscelin, my brother and myself, and especially
my Dad, did whatever we could to be there for her, talking and
listening to her. Whatever she taught us, we tried to give it
back," said eldest son Leonard, 31.
"It happened quite rapidly and drastically in the last month. We
were hopeful, but sometimes you can't explain things."
Mdm Tan died on Tuesday night. She was 59.
Speaking at the Mount Vernon Funeral Parlour on Wednesday, Leonard,
the managing director of Yeo's Aquatics swim school, said her life
"was an example" to her children.
"Loving us, providing for us, being a moral support for us, being a
listening ear - she went out of her way like a mum would. That gave
us wings to soar.
"At least we knew we could fall into a safety net, knowing she and
my dad wouldn't judge us at all ... regardless of whether we made
it, and that was the environment we grew up in."
Of the three children, it was Joscelin, 30, of course, who made the
biggest headlines. When at age 14, she swept nine gold medals at
the 1993 SEA Games, it was Mdm Tan, an accountant, who helped the
teenager handle the intense media and public scrutiny.
Joscelin declined to speak to the press on Wednesday. But former
national swimmer Gary Tan, one of Joscelin's close friends, said
her mum was her source of inspiration, especially in tough
times.
"Jos really looked up to her as her pillar of strength," said Mr
Tan, 27.
"Her mother's drive and character was a main reason why she had so
much success in her swimming career."
Though Joscelin may have grabbed more of the media spotlight, Mdm
Tan and her husband, Mr Lawrence Yeo, 67, treated all their
children equally. Said Leonard: "They loved us all the same and
gave us the same opportunities."
Former Singapore swim star and current national head coach Ang Peng
Siong remembers Mdm Tan as an "exemplary" parent who was there for
"every of her children's training sessions and meets".
The funeral service is on Friday morning.
- TODAY