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She's a doctor and a diver, and most recently Singapore's first woman to attend the gruelling U.S. Navy diving medical officers' course (DMOC).

Handpicked to attend course

According to the Ministry of Defence's (Mindef) PIONEER website, the 27-year-old Captain (CPT) Chiew Wenqi is the formation medical officer of the Naval Diving Unit (NDU).

The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) only sends one or two of its medical officers to attend the DMOC each year, and Chiew was one of the two handpicked to attend the prestigious course in Florida in July 2022.

This not only places her among the ranks of the few medical officers that get to attend the course, but also makes her the first woman to do so.

For the next three-and-a-half months, which included a five-week preparatory phase, Chiew's physical abilities were put to the test through a series of rigorous activities.

Course is physically demanding

These include, but are not limited to, daily physical exercises that consisted of morning runs of up to 10km, as well as training in the pool, such as water treading and breath holding.

Chiew not only had to tread water for two minutes, but also carry scuba tanks that weighed about 40kg during one of the training exercises.

This is no small feat, considering that she is rather petite, standing at 1.63m tall and weighing only 50kg.

Despite her athletic background, where she was part of the soccer and taekwondo team in Raffles Institution and scuba dived recreationally, Chiew said she still found the trainings "very physically challenging".

However, it is safe to say that Chiew is fitter than most.

For anyone in doubt, she pulled off 60 push-ups and 60 sit-ups, and completed her 2.4km run in 11 minutes and 30 seconds for her latest Individual Physical Proficiency Test (IPPT), raking in an impressive 97 points out of the total 100 points that can be awarded.

Picked up valuable insights and skills

DMOC's intensive physical training is not for naught.

The various dive trainings, for instance, allowed Chiew to better understand the physical and mental challenges that divers go through underwater.

She said: "When they have injuries or when they present with symptoms, I can understand their dive profile better and what they have done. So this helps me to make a better diagnosis and treatment for them."

Besides this, Chiew also picked up valuable technical skills at the DMOC, such as being able to test out the hyperbaric chamber, which pressurises the air to mimic the underwater environment and is used in the treatment of diving injuries.

She also learned to use the closed circuit rebreathing systems used by the U.S. Navy SEAL and Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams, which bears similarities to the ones used by NDU divers.

She also received extensive training in diving medicine during the course, which concluded in October 2022.

All of these aid her in her role at NDU, where she treats illnesses and injuries associated with diving, such as decompression sickness, which occurs when a diver swims to the surface too quickly.

Hopes to inspire other women to join the Navy

Some may say that becoming a part of the force is a dream come true for Chiew.

Growing up, she was always interested in the military, particularly in the elite special forces who conduct exciting operations such as parachuting out of a plane and diving into the sea.

This came into fruition when she was awarded the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Medicine Scholarship, obtaining her medical degree from National University of Singapore.

Now, Chiew wants to serve as an inspiration for other women wanting to join the military, telling them that they need to have a certain level of physical fitness and resilience in order to get through SAF's challenging training.

With that said, she encourages them to "take a leap of faith", adding that the "career choice will be an extraordinary and exciting one".

You can get a glimpse into Chiew's life in the video below:

All images from the Ministry of Defence's PIONEER website and Facebook