Soaked by the rain, Youth Olympic Games fan Low Wei Jie, 12, ran 15km yesterday to take pictures of torchbearers in the flame relay. It took a while before everyone noticed the unknown boy who became the day's surprise star.
THERE were two constants during yesterday's morning session of the Youth Olympic Flame torch relay.
One was the flame itself, as it weaved its way through Sengkang, Punggol and Hougang. The other was schoolboy Low Wei Jie, 12.
Dressed in an orange T-shirt, blue bermudas and flip-flops, he clutched his digital camera and stuck with the relay.
He ran. And ran. And ran. Over 21/2 hours, he covered almost 15km, undeterred by a heavy downpour along the way.
'When I read in the newspapers that the flame was coming here, I just wanted to see it for myself, and follow it,' explained the drenched Compassvale Primary School pupil afterwards. 'I might never see it again.'
His day had started bright and early at Greendale Secondary School in Punggol, where Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean had passed the torch to Greendale student Yogesh Kumar, whose tag '3001' meant he was the first torchbearer of the third day of the relay.
At first, nobody paid any attention to the boy in the orange T-shirt. An hour later, however, the mystery runner started to get noticed.
'Wasn't that boy present at the start?' asked a cameraman.
The boy would disappear from sight, only to reappear from among supporters lining the streets to snap pictures as torchbearers handed the flame from one to the other.
'I can't believe it, that boy is back again!' exclaimed someone in the relay entourage.
He kept pace right up until the 122nd torchbearer jogged into Hougang Stadium, where the relay paused for a 15-minute break.
It was at the stadium carpark that Wei Jie soon found himself the centre of attention as reporters, officials and Youth Olympic Games volunteers made a beeline for him.
'None of this was planned,' said the Primary 6 pupil. 'I didn't know I was going to run all this way.'
He said he wanted pictures for his scrapbook, and his favourites were shots of two schoolmates who were torchbearers. 'I'm sure they'll like the photos,' he said.
His morning's adventure was not without some pain. His flip-flops may have held up, but his feet hurt, and there were bloodied scratches on his right ankle.
Then he discovered to great consternation that the camera he had borrowed from his parents was not waterproof and had jammed.
'There are other pictures in it that my mother wanted to keep,' he said. 'I hope she doesn't scold me!'
An only child, Wei Jie lives with his parents in Rivervale. They had given him permission to follow the relay, but were surprised to learn how his morning turned out.
His mother Cindy, 45, an operator in a logistics company, said she got worried when she called home and he did not answer the telephone. 'He had said he was just going to run as far as Sengkang and I thought he forgot to take his house key,' she said.
As for the camera, she said: 'Never mind if it's broken. We can always replace it. I'm just happy he's okay.'
At Hougang Stadium, Wei Jie was doing much better than okay.
As word of his solo trek spread, strangers came up to tell him they thought he was something special.
The six support runners who had followed the flame posed for pictures with him, and handed him a spare torch to hold. It was the first time he had touched the symbol of the Youth Olympic Games.
Even the Traffic Police officers who had accompanied the relay got off their motorcycles when they spotted him and came over to do some back-slapping.
'They called me a star,' said Wei Jie.
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