Not only did Singapore get an Olympic gold medalist in 2016, we also had Nathan Hartono, Asian pop star.

Anyone who's seen a show by Hartono would attest to the singer-songwriter's effortless ability to captivate an entire crowd — but with the region-wide platform he was given with Sing! China, the hottest singing competition TV show in China, he performed to his biggest crowd yet and — after Milo trucks and countless public appearances — is now a household name in Singapore.

Will 2017 give us another breakout Singaporean singer? That's what the reality show is evidently aiming to find. Singaporean organizers Eeva Productions have been tasked with the Sing! China Singapore Selections, shortlisting a crop of hopeful singers to find the one standout that'll represent the country in the next season of the show.

After a grueling audition process, 12 contestants were picked out of a group of 43, and Nathan Hartono himself made it a point to meet each successful contestant at their homes and surprise them with the results.

The final 12 were subjected to rigorous boot camp training in Johor Bahru — not just stringent practice sessions, but actual exercising — and are now gearing up for the finals, set to be held at Capitol Theatre on April 1st.

The Sing! China Singapore Selection boot camp. We weren't kidding.

The hype behind this special Sing! China selection process seems to be gaining steam — a special stamp collection by SingPost was launched, featuring the likenesses of the contestants and judges. 

One of them will be the next Singapore representative at Sing! China — while time will tell if they will achieve what Hartono did all the way to the finals, at least the Singapore Selection round may give a glimpse at who could very well be Singapore's next big pop star.

Sing! China's Singapore Selection Finals will be held at Capitol Theatre on April 1st. Tickets are free for reservation, with a cap limit of 4 tickets per person.