Samantha Louisa Ginn Yeo (born 24 January 1997) is a Singaporean breaststroke and medley swimmer. Competing in her first of three Southeast Asian Games at just 12 years of age, Yeo has represented her country at the long course and short course World Championships, the FINA World Cup, Asian Games, Asian Swimming Championships, Commonwealth Games, Youth Olympic Games and Asian Youth Games. In June 2014, Yeo was recruited to the Michigan Wolverines on a partial, performance-based, sports scholarship.
Career
Schools competition
Yeo took part in the 2008 Pacific School Games in Canberra, Australia where she won five medals, including gold in the 50-metre backstroke and in the 4 × 50-metre freestyle relay.
In the 51st National Schools Swimming Championships, 2010, Yeo lowered the under-14's 100-metre breaststroke national record a further three times.
Yeo won another four medals at the 52nd National Schools Swimming Championships in 2011. Taking out the 50 and 100-metre breaststroke events in new meet record times, Yeo also lowered her personal best in the 100-metre event twice.
Yeo continued her record-breaking success at the 2011 ASEAN School Games in Singapore. Bagging two golds, a silver and a bronze medal, Yeo set two new national under-17's relay records.
Yeo started 2012 with a solid performance at the 53rd National Schools Swimming Championships, by winning three gold medals.
Another successful ASEAN School Games meet in Surabaya, Indonesia followed with Yeo picking six medals including two gold and another national under-17's record in the 4 × 100-metre freestyle relay.
Yeo began the year by defending her title in the 100-metre breaststroke at the 54th National Schools Swimming Championships. Claiming victory with a time of 1:11.90, this broke her own meet record and came within 0.03 seconds of her personal best time. She also swam her quickest-ever first 50-metre split in 33.55 seconds. In the 200-metre breaststroke, Yeo won silver in a new national under-17's record time of 2:34.07, shaving 0.22 seconds off Nicolette Teo's 11-year-old mark.
Yeo commenced 2014 by competing in her fifth National Schools Swimming Championships. Swimming in the 16–19 age group, the 17-year-old won gold in the 200-metre breaststroke in 2:34.17. Finishing 14 seconds ahead of Singapore Sports School's Amanda Tam, Yeo smashed Cheryl Lim's 2011 meet record by three seconds. In the heats of the 100-metre breaststroke, Yeo was the fastest qualifier in a meet record time of 1:12.58, eclipsing Cheryl Lim's 1:14.06 set in 2011. In the final, Yeo clocked a time of 1:11.65 but was disqualified for executing alternating kicks. The time would have been a new meet record and gold medal. Devastated by the result, she told The Straits Times that it was the third time this year that she been disqualified for her kicks. However, she later teamed up with Jing Wen Shan, Madeline Quek and Song Ai Vee to win gold in the 4 × 50-metre medley relay with 2:02.88, shaving 0.03 seconds off Raffles's 2012 meet record and the same quartet won gold in the 4 × 50-metre freestyle relay in 1:50.44, narrowly missing the meet record of 1:49.24.
Age-Group Competition
Yeo first competed for Singapore at the age of 11 at the 32nd Southeast Asian Age Group Swimming Championships in Bangkok, Thailand in June 2008. In April 2009, now aged 12, Yeo, representing the Ace Swim Club at the 7th ASEAN Inter-Club Age Group Swimming Championships in Singapore, won eight medals – six gold and two silver – and set two meet records. Following a successful meet at the 33rd Southeast Asian Age Group Swimming Championships in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where she picked up five medals,.
This was followed by another highly successful meet at the 34th Southeast Asian Age Group Swimming Championships in Manila, Philippines, where she won nine medals from nine events and broke a further two meet records.
She then lowered her personal best time in the 50-metre breaststroke to 33.35 at the 35th Southeast Asian Age Group Swimming Championships in Da Nang, Vietnam, where she won four medals.
After missing the inaugural Asian Youth Games in 2009 due to age restrictions, Yeo won five medals at the 2013 Asian Youth Games in Nanjing including gold in the 50-metre breaststroke in a new personal best of 32.56. Yeo collected silver in the 100-metre breaststroke, 200-metre breaststroke, 4 × 100-metre medley relay with Marina Chan, Stacy Tan, Meagan Lim and 4 × 100-metre freestyle relay alongside Chan, Hoong En Qi, Rachel Tseng in a new national under-17's record time of 3:54.67, slashing 1.88 seconds from the previous mark.