V.O.U.S #3: Shiok!

Hello Ultimate Frisbee Players!

I am BACK! After travelling around Asia to have a good break and source for ideas for new content for Ultimate Leh!, I am back to round all things Ultimate for the year 2015! To usher in 2016, let's end it with a BANG as We had the rare opportunity to interview Shiok! Ultimate, one of the top Ultimate clubs with Singapore! We were there at Farrer Park field with Yanling, the Publicity Representative for Shiok on one fine morning and let's see what she has to say!

Credits: Tan Yanling

1) How was Shiok! formed?

it was formed in 2005 by a group of friends who wanted to play ultimate together. Slowly, friends brought friends along and we slowly grew to a size of 60 players now. The name 'Shiok' came about from the Singaporean slang 'Shiok' which meant a sheer feeling of happiness and satisfaction. This was the feeling that we had from playing Ultimate and the rest as they say, is history.

2) What are your team's goals?

We aspire to make our presence known in Asia and eventually on a global level in tournaments such as the WUCC!

Credits: Alexander Lim

3) Who runs the show in Shiok? (i.e. captain, operations etc)

We generally follow a flat structure in which players with different levels of experiences would play together and this would allow the younger players to learn from the veteran players who have vast amounts of playing experience under their belts. Moreover, the veteran players also can learn a thing or two from the younger players, and this allow them to fit nicely into Shiok's brand of playing Ultimate.

As for things like captaincy and stuffs, we are now in the offseason in the ultimate calendar in Singapore, we have yet to choose captains this time round. However, we'll be sure to tell you when we do!

4) What is your recruitment policy? (i.e. how often do you hold tryouts etc)

We look for players that are leaders in their own right who takes initiatives towards their ultimate goals. We are also looking for players that are disciplined to be able to take the high physical and mental intensity of our training. As for experience, the players we are looking for need not be experience players. However, that being said, the selection of players is sometimes based on the club's purpose (i.e. to train for Worlds) and the experience level we are looking for in players might change accordingly.

As for our recruitment policy, we have not fixed on a certain style of recruitment. That being said, if you are interested and fit all the criteria we are looking for in a ultimate player, feel free to drop us a mail or check us out on our Facebook page!

5) How do you differentiate your team from the other ultimate clubs in Singapore?

Every team has their own strength and weaknesses, that's why there are so many different ultimate clubs in Singapore! As for us, I feel that for Shiok! we emphasise on clinical and very technical plays with a flair of finesse mixed into it.

We also see ourselves as one big family working together towards a common goal as well.

Credits: Neoh Yi Liang

6) As a veteran team, what are your views on the future of Ultimate in Singapore?

As a team that has been in the scene for a long time, it is heartening to see more players playing the game of Ultimate. In addition, there is more recognition for the ultimate scene in Singapore and increased presence in regional and even international competitions! In addition, the ultimate scene is heading towards a more competitive level with the arrival of high-level playing tournaments such as the UltyLeague Elite, which features strong players from various ultimate clubs representing a region in Singapore!

7) What do you think of the current support to people learning how to play ultimate/outside the ultimate community, given that most tournaments are catered to the more experienced teams?

Although the community is growing, we are often faced with problems such as fields (we are losing them really quickly!) Moreover, as teams become more competitive, there are lesser slots for teams to join for ultimate tournaments, In addition, UPA are often faced with a lot of red tape trying to get more support. However, they are doing their best in supporting whatever they can for ultimate players!

8) What do you think of the current trend of players going to incumbent clubs over the creation of new clubs?

Essentially, the decision to join an Ultimate club ultimately lies in what the ultimate player intend to do for his or her ultimate career, be it to play with the best or to nurture younger players. These goals would drive these players to do what they need to do in order to achieve those goals, be it to sign up in a very competitive club or to create a club that brings in younger players to nurture them for the future.

Thank you very much Yanling and Shiok! for this interview! We hope them all the best in their future endeavours as they embark on a new ultimate journey in the end of 2016

As for the readers of Ultimate Leh!, stay tuned for new and exciting posts about all things Ultimate coming your way soon in 2016!:)