Controversy dogs this year’s Singapore Sports Awards
SINGAPORE: Controversy dogged this year’s Singapore Sports Awards.
Former table tennis head coach Liu Guodong, who helped the Singapore Team win a silver medal at the Beijing Olympics last year, would have clinched the title of Coach of the Year had he been nominated.
On the other hand, Mr Liu’s charges – the women’s table tennis team – won the Team of the Year award.
During the Beijing Olympics, Mr Liu was accused of neglecting one of the male table tennis players. Even though the matter was later resolved, the coach decided not to renew his contract with the Singapore Table Tennis Association and went to work in Indonesia instead.
Nevertheless, the Sports Award panel felt that he was deserving of the Coach of the Year award for helping the women’s table tennis team break Singapore’s 48-year Olympic medal drought.
But the panel could not consider him as the Singapore Table Tennis Association did not nominate him.
Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who is also the president of the Singapore National Olympic Council, said: “We do have to take into consideration the views of the sports associations when it comes to these nominations. Eventually, whether a person is nominated or not nominated, the sports association has to take responsibility.”
The Singapore Table Tennis Association said the decision not to nominate Mr Liu was made by an in-house committee.
Lee Bee Wah, president of the association and MP of Ang Mo Kio GRC, said: “The committee felt that result was one thing, but for Coach of the Year award, we expect much more. Coach of the Year must naturally be well respected by all the players of the team.”
And for the first time in the 42-year history of the awards, there will be no Sportsman of the Year. The nominees this year included the likes of former Sportsman of the Year, bowler Remy Ong. But the panel felt that the athletes were not up to mark, so no winner was selected.
The Sportswoman of the Year title went to bowler Jasmine Yeong-Nathan for her stellar victory at the AMF World Cup last year.
“The nominees – as in Jiawei and Tao Li – did very well also. So it is a real honour to come out and win this tournament and be compared to them,” she said.
The title of Sportsgirl of the Year went to another bowler, Jazreel Tan, while the Sportsboy of the Year award was given to Yong Yi Xiang from Wushu.
The winners will receive their awards at a ceremony at Orchard Hotel on June 19.
Story was first posted at CNA
Congratulate to Yi Xiang with the award of Sportsboy of the Year.