This week, we speak to parents who spare no expenses to support their children’s karting aspirations.
By Cheryl Tay
15 January 2009
HE ASPIRES to be a Formula One driver one day.
It is anybody’s guess if Suriya Bala Kerisnan Thevar, 16, will achieve his dream, but at least he has the full support of his parents.
Just last year, the Bala Kerisnans, who live in a HDB flat, spent about $190,000 – more than what an average Singaporean earns in a year – to fulfil their son’s racing dreams.
Like most Formula One drivers, Suriya is using karting to hone his driving skills.
‘Seeing how dedicated and determined he is about karting, we agreed to fund this sporting ambition of his,’ said Suriya’s father TM Bala Kerisnan Thevar, 47, who runs his own construction business.
The bulk of the money is spent on buying new karts and tyres.
Suriya owns five karts – each with different specifications to suit different races.
For every race that he competes in, he has six new sets of tyres.
His parents’ investments have not gone to waste so far.
Last year, Suriya participated in 14 races, namely the 2008 Asian Karting Open Championship (AKOC), the Rotax Max Challenge Asia and Malaysia, and the ROK Cup International Final in Italy.
Fully funded by his parents, the St Francis Methodist School student competed in all five legs of the AKOC – two in Macau and one each in Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand – and finished a commendable eighth out of 30 drivers in his category.
One of his best results came last year when he finished on his first podium as a rookie in the senior category in the Indonesian leg of Rotax Max Challenge Asia.
But his joy was shortlived when the Indian flag was mistakenly raised instead of the Singapore flag.
A lack of awareness for Singaporean racers perhaps, but it is something that Suriya hopes to change.
He developed a passion for cars from young.
At three, he was mimicking car engine noises while watching motor racing on television. By five, he could recognise most cars on the road.
When he was nine, his mother, Vijiyesvari, 42, a retired nurse, took him and his two brothers to KartWorld in Taman Jurong during the school holidays in June.
Savings
‘His passion for karting was evident from the beginning, but I was reluctant to get him his own kart till he was 12. Even then, it was a second-hand kart bought with my savings, without his father’s knowledge,’ said his mother.
His parents hope that Suriya will produce some good results to attract sponsors.
‘I want my son to progress further, but self-funding is unsustainable. He has produced some good results in kart racing and I hope he would be recognised for his achievements,’ said his father.
Suriya usually travels to training and races alone because of his father’s tight work schedule and his mother’s fear of watching him race.
On average, he travels to Malaysia two to three times a month for practice.
Studies is still the priority for the St Francis Methodist School student, who will be taking his ‘O’ levels this year.
Meanwhile, his focus is on karting, where he hopes to do well particularly in the AKOC and the ROK International Final this year.
He hopes to enter Formula BMW by 2011.
‘Not many kids have the opportunity to kart competitively because of the immense financial commitments. I’m very lucky to have my parents’ support,’ said Suriya.
‘The only way I can pay my parents back is to train hard, do my best and make them proud.’
*The writer is a freelancer.
