Arumugam Vijiaratnam (24 August 1921 – 18 February 2016) was the only Singaporean who represented his country in four sports — hockey, cricket, football and rugby — doing so from 1946 to 1956. He was the first Singaporean engineer. A top civil servant, Vijiaratnam represented Singapore at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games in hockey, where he was instrumental in the 6-1 rout of the United States.

Education

Born in

Ipoh , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Ipoh in Perak , pushpin_map = #Malaysia#Asia#Earth , pushpin_mapsize = 275px , pushpin_map_caption = Ipoh in Malaysia , coordinates ...

, Malaysia, Vijiaratnam studied in

Victoria School Victoria School (VS) is a government autonomous boys' secondary school in Siglap, Singapore. Established in 1876, it is Singapore's second oldest state secondary school. It offers a six-year Integrated Programme, which allows students to skip t ...

in Singapore from 1937 to 1940. He was one of the first government scholars to demonstrate that sports and studies could be balanced successfully. He was awarded government scholarships to study engineering at Kuala Lumpur Technical College in 1941 and Brighton College of Advanced Technology in 1950 where he graduated with an engineering degree. He captained the hockey and cricket teams at the Brighton College of Advanced Technology.

Career

After he returned to Singapore in 1953, he worked for the

Public Works Department This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

until he was seconded to the

Port of Singapore Authority PSA International Pte Ltd is a port operator and supply chain company, with flagship operations in Singapore and Antwerp. One of the largest port operators in the world, PSA has terminals across 26 countries, including deepsea, rail and inland f ...

(PSA) in 1964. He played a key role in PSA's formation, helping to develop its containerisation programme, and rose to become its chief engineer. He worked in PSA for 17 years and was one of two key men who were instrumental in reclamation works for

Changi Airport Singapore Changi Airport, commonly known as Changi Airport , is a major civilian international airport that serves Singapore, and is one of the largest transportation hubs in Asia. As one of the world's busiest airports by international passen ...

, a feat that drew mention in Singapore's founding father,

Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...

's Memoirs, ''From Third World to First: The Singapore Story''. He later returned to PSA and retired from there as the director of engineering at the age of 75. Vijiaratnam became the first Pro-Chancellor of

Nanyang Technological University The Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is a national research university in Singapore. It is the second oldest autonomous university in the country and is considered as one of the most prestigious universities in the world by various inte ...

in 1992 and served until 2005. He was also chairman of

Tamil Murasu ''Tamil Murasu'' ( ta, தமிழ் முரசு) is a Singapore-based Tamil-language newspaper. Launched in 1935 by Thamizhavel G. Sarangapani, Tamil Murasu is Singapore's only Tamil-language newspaper. It is one of the sixteen newspape ...

for ten years from 1995, and served on the Presidential Council for Minority Rights from 1994 to 2001. He was also the first Asian to serve as vice-president of the Britain-based

Institution of Structural Engineers The Institution of Structural Engineers is a professional body for structural engineering based in the United Kingdom. The Institution has over 30,000 members operating in over 100 countries. The Institution provides professional accreditation ...

. Vijiaratnam died peacefully at his home in Maryland Drive, off Holland Road, in 2016. He left behind a son, Vijendran, and 3 daughters. His wife, Yogasoundary, died in 2011.

Book

A book about his life, "Engineered For Success", was launched in March 2016.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vijiaratnam, Arumugam 1921 births 2016 deaths Singaporean sportspeople of Indian descent Singaporean people of Tamil descent Singaporean male field hockey players Olympic field hockey players of Singapore Field hockey players at the 1956 Summer Olympics People from Ipoh Malaysian sportspeople of Indian descent Malaysian people of Tamil descent Malaysian emigrants to Singapore Victoria School, Singapore alumni Singaporean rugby union players Singapore FA players Singaporean cricketers Singaporean Hindus Association footballers not categorized by position Singaporean footballers