(born 27 October 1962) is a Singaporean former competitive swimmer and coach. A two-time Olympian, Ang set national records in swimming for the 50m freestyle at 22.69 seconds and the 100m freestyle at 51.09 seconds, which stood for 33 and 27 years, respectively.
Having trained in swimming since he was young, he made his swimming debut at the 1977 SEA Games and participated at the 1978 Asian Games. Ang's performance at the 1980 Hawaii International Invitational Swimming Championship, where he attained a time of 23.22 seconds in the 50m freestyle, led him to be offered a scholarship and he subsequently attended the University of Houston, where he trained under American coach Phil Hansel from 1980 to 1986. At the 1982 United States Swimming Championships, he set the national record in the 50m freestyle with 22.69 seconds, being named the "World's Fastest Swimmer" by magazine Swimming World. He would make subsequent appearances at the SEA Games and the Asian Games throughout the 1980s to 1990s in swimming.
Upon not receiving sufficient funding for training in the United States for the 1994 Asian Games, Ang announced his retirement from competitive swimming in August 1993. He has since worked as a coach, previously serving as Singapore's head national swimming coach from 1998 to 2012. Ang was ranked fifth in a public poll of Singapore's fifty best sportspeople of the century held by The Straits Times in 1999. He was also named Sportsman of the Year by the Singapore National Olympic Council for three consecutive years from 1982 to 1984.
Early life and education
Ang was born on 27 October 1962 in the State of Singapore, the fourth of five children to Ang Teck Bee and Lily Ho; his father Teck Bee was a judoist who had previously participated in judo at the 1964 Summer Olympics. Ang was taught how to swim at the age of five by his father, who set him on a weight training routine. He studied at Anderson Secondary School while training with swim coaches from Anglo-Chinese School, later moving to Anglo-Chinese School and continuing his education and training with them. Ang first represented Singapore at the 1977 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he won a silver medal in the 4 × 100m freestyle relay. He then participated at the 1978 Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand.
In 1980, Ang participated at the Hawaii International Invitational Swimming Championship, where he attained a personal best time of 23.22 seconds in the 50m freestyle, placing him fourth in the event. Additionally, Ang was the only non-American swimmer to reach the 50m freestyle finals, and his time ranked him as the world's fifteenth fastest swimmer at the time. As a result of his performance, he received four-year scholarship offers from both the University of Hawaii and the University of Houston. Later that month, Ang participated at the United States Swimming Championships in Indiana, where he won the 50m freestyle in 22.69 seconds, which was a national record; it stood for 33 years before being broken by Joseph Schooling at the 2015 SEA Games.
Ang then represented Singapore at the 1982 Asian Games in Delhi, India, where he won gold in the 100m freestyle and bronze in the 100m butterfly. In October, Ang participated at the 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, Australia, where he placed fourth in the 100m butterfly. In 1983, Ang won the 50-yard freestyle race at the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division One Swimming Championships. In the following year, he placed second in the same event. In acknowledgement of his efforts, Ang was named Sportsman of the Year by the Singapore National Olympic Council for three consecutive years from 1982 to 1984.<!---He was the 50-yard champion at the US Swimming Championships in 1982 and 1986, and was named an All-American for four consecutive years from 1981 to 1984.--->
Ang represented Singapore at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, where he participated in the 100m freestyle. He won the 100m freestyle consolation finals,