Singapore Paintball Series
The Singapore Paintball Series (SPS) is a tournament paintball competition and event organisation in Singapore. It developed from the Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS), which began in March 2008, and adopted the SPS name in 2010.[1]
Its competitions have included novice, open, corporate and tertiary categories, followed by divisional tournaments using mechanical and electronic paintball markers. SPS has also organised introductory competitions, referee development and international events.[2][3]
History
[edit]Origins as SPNS
[edit]The inaugural SPNS tournament involved seven teams playing three-against-three with Tippmann A5 markers. Three legs were organised in each of the 2008 and 2009 seasons, with support from Red Dynasty Paintball Park.[1]
In 2009, SPNS introduced five-player competition at public venues in Pasir Ris and West Coast.[1] The early competition is covered separately in Singapore Paintball Novice Series.
Renaming and expansion, 2010–2012
[edit]The 2010 Singapore Paintball Series was held at East Coast Park on 16–17 October. Twenty-nine teams competed across Open, Novice, Corporate and Tertiary divisions. Electronic markers were introduced in the Open Division. The post-event report identified Jane Koh as tournament director and Ben Seow as tournament promoter.[2]
The 2011 season included Jurong Central Park and the My Buona Vista Cup at East Coast Park. Teams were permitted to register up to two foreign players for the opening leg.[1][3]
For 2012, the organisers announced that the Novice Division would become Division 4, the existing Open Division would become Division 3, and a new Open Division would accommodate higher-ranked competitors. The Tertiary Division was removed from the main series.[4]
The opening 2012 leg at Farrer Park introduced Race-to play in Open and Division 3. The second leg at Marina Bay formed part of the SHOOTOUT! Sports Carnival.[5][6]
International tournaments and divisional events
[edit]PBLeagues records SPS tournaments from 2013 onwards. The June 2015 competition combined SPS Leg 2 with a Singapore round of the Paintball Asia League Series. Singapore also hosted PALS Singapore in May 2016.[7]
In 2017, the SPS 500 calendar separated Division 4 events from the combined Open and Division 3 events. The calendar also included the 2017 GI Sportz Singapore Cup. Separate divisional event dates continued in 2018 and 2019.[7]
Completed results are recorded for the February 2020 Open and Division 4 tournament and March 2020 Division 3 tournament.[8][9]
Published rules for 2023
[edit]The rules revision dated 5 February 2023 specified Race-to-3 with eight-minute games for Open, and Race-to-2 with six-minute games for Amateur and AGPIC categories. It also removed pod limits.[10]
The document stated that SPS would not use PBLI registration in 2023, while retaining historical PBLI records as a reference for assessing player eligibility. It dated SPS's adoption of APPA/PBLI registration to 2013.[10]
Refereeing and player development
[edit]Before the 2010 tournament, AsiaRef manager Junaidi Kalil conducted a two-day refereeing course for nine local participants, who subsequently officiated at the event.[2]
At the July 2012 tournament, the organisers reported that SPS referees officiated without overseas guest referees, under Azhar and referee manager Idi.[5]
The SPS Rookie Challenge provided introductory competition for players who had not previously registered for an SPS event.[11]
Associated competitions
[edit]The SPS organising team established the Asia Girls Paintball International Championship in 2017 to encourage women's participation in competitive paintball.[12]
Its July 2019 programme also included the Asia Paintball Masters and Singapore 7s. The organiser's subsequent review reported five veteran teams in the Masters and ten teams in Singapore 7s.[13]
Selected overall series champions
[edit]These are season championships, distinct from individual tournament victories.[6][14][15]
| Season | Category | Overall champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Open | Red Sevens |
| 2011 | Novice | Heartbreakers |
| 2012 | Open | Cherry Credits Red Sevens II |
| 2012 | Division 3 | The Outlaws I |
| 2012 | Division 4 | The Outlaws II |
| 2013 | Open | Zoo |
| 2013 | Division 3 | A.C.E.S |
| 2013 | Division 4 | Hellions SG |
See also
[edit]- Paintball in Singapore
- Singapore Paintball Novice Series
- Red Dynasty Paintball Park
- Paintball Asia League Series
- Asia Girls Paintball International Championship
References
[edit]- Singapore Paintball Series 2011 Release, Paintball in Singapore 101, 16 March 2011.
- Singapore Paintball Series 2010 - Post event report, Paintball in Singapore 101, 7 November 2010.
- Singapore Paintball Series 2011 Leg 1 - Jurong Central Park, Paintball in Singapore 101, 23 April 2011.
- Changes to SPS 2012 - A big leap towards the future, Paintball in Singapore 101, 7 November 2011.
- Singapore Paintball Series 2012 Leg 1 - Farrer Park, Paintball in Singapore 101, 6 August 2012.
- Singapore Paintball Series 2012 Post Event Report, Paintball in Singapore 101, 18 October 2012.
- Singapore Paintball Series, PBLeagues, league event calendar.
- Places: Singapore Paintball Series 2020 Open Division and Division 4 Leg 1, PBLeagues.
- Places: Singapore Paintball Series 2020 Division 3 Leg 1, PBLeagues.
- SPS Rules and Regulations, Version 2.0, Singapore Paintball Series, revision dated 5 February 2023.
- SPS Rookie Challenge 2012 - Champion Paint Demonz, Paintball in Singapore 101, 19 March 2012.
- 13–14 July 2019 Executive Summary, Singapore Paintball Series, 2019.
- SPS 2020 Executive Summary, Singapore Paintball Series, review of 2019.
- Full Results of Singapore Paintball Series 2011 Leg 2 - My Buona Vista Cup, Paintball in Singapore 101, 23 October 2011.
- Post Singapore Paintball Series disorder syndrome!, Paintball in Singapore 101, 25 September 2013.