The Era of Tiger Swimming Club / Water Polo Club

The Haw-Par Swimming Pool, also known as the Pasir Panjang Swimming Pool, was built in the late 1930s and officially opened in October 1940. In those days, the pool was considered very modern. It was equipped with an electric pump to empty and refill the 36.6m by 12.2m pool within a few hours, thus allowing the pool to operate every day of the year.

The pool had a restaurant cum bar and bathers paid only 10 cents each to use the facility. Water polo training was introduced under the now defunct Tiger Swimming Club soon after the pool was opened. This was where the great Gan family, stalwart enthusiasts who were to later develop, promote and raise the game to national and international standards, started playing water polo.

John Gan, one of the youngest in the family learned the trade from his elder brother Eng Teck, who was one of the star defenders of the 1954 Asian Games Gold Medal winning team which subsequently, qualified for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. The other family members who played alongside were Gan Eng Joo and Gan Eng Hong. John recalled how they used to learn the game by picking up the balls behind the goal posts and carry goal posts for the senior before being given a chance to play the game. Players like Yap Chuan Seng, Seto Ah Soo, Woo Peng Kee, Willy Yap, Gan Eng Joo, Gan Eng Hong, Tan Yam Cheng, Chin Heng Fong, Kong Siong Leong, Pang Tee Ann, Lim Hou Kim, Thomas Lee were also key members of the Tiger Water Polo team in those years.