By Jermyn Chow, The Straits Times, 31 May 2012
NAVAL officer Sam Tan Wei Shen won top honours at the prestigious United States Naval Academy (USNA), beating 1,099 American and foreign cadets.
Lieutenant Tan, 24, is the first-ever foreigner to top a batch of naval cadets in the academy's history.
The naval officer is part of a cohort that included 14 cadets from 12 countries, including Pakistan, Taiwan and Romania.
Speaking to The Straits Times last night from his hotel in Maryland's Annapolis city in the US, Lt Tan said: 'I was surprised because the guys I was training with were Navy Seals and some were even going to be astronauts. To be training with the best and brightest, and still come up tops is pretty amazing.'
Top honours at USNA are a rare prize as candidates vying for the honour are cadets handpicked by American and selected foreign navies worldwide.
Former graduates of the academy include US former presidential candidate and Arizona Senator John McCain; former Chairman of Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Admiral Mike Mullen; and former US President Jimmy Carter.
Former graduates of the academy include US former presidential candidate and Arizona Senator John McCain; former Chairman of Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Admiral Mike Mullen; and former US President Jimmy Carter.
Lt Tan, who spent four years in USNA, is a recipient of a Singapore Armed Forces scholarship. He began his training at USNA in 2008, after graduating from the Officer Cadet School here that same year. The Singaporean officer is also the first foreign cadet in the USNA's history to take charge of the administrative duties of the 4,400 cadets. As the brigade adjutant, he was tasked to command the 4,400-strong ceremonial parades.
'That's the size of the Republic of Singapore Navy,' said Lt Tan, the eldest of four siblings.
His mother is a housewife and his father owns a cleaning firm. Both parents were at the full-regalia parade in the academy, where he received his award from US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta on Tuesday. He was also awarded a Bachelor of Science in Ocean Systems Engineering.
'I was put in an environment in which I challenged and pushed myself beyond my limits and became stronger physically and mentally,' said Lt Tan, who said he hopes to take part in international peace support operations like the anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden.
Of his experience, Lt Tan said he will miss the friends who helped him cope and assimilate in the US. He is flying back to Singapore tomorrow.
'We shared jokes, helped each other do laundry or iron our clothes... these were small gestures that mattered a lot and kept us going for so long.'
'We shared jokes, helped each other do laundry or iron our clothes... these were small gestures that mattered a lot and kept us going for so long.'
In 2012, Republic of Singapore Navy officer Lieutenant Sam Tan Wei Shen became the first foreigner to top his class at...
Posted by U.S. Embassy Singapore on Thursday, February 4, 2016
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