A woman, who wishes to be known as “Bystander”, is so upset with the way the Youth Olympic Games has been organized that she has written to the Singapore Sports Council (SSC) to voice her disapproval. We publish her letter below (without edits).
The SSC replied to her email informing her that the event is organized by the Singapore Youth Olympic Game Organising Committee (SYOGOC) and that it will bring “your feedback to the attention of the team concerned.”
Here is “Bystander’s” letter to the SSC:
Hi there
Just to let you people know that we are not happy with the YOG cost overruns from $100m to $300m, without any explanations to taxpayers who are paying for this event.
From netizens reporting, Singapore has to build a sports stadium for Jamaica, free of charge, in return for this Central American country to promote this YOG in that part of the world, and complaint from one European YOG ambassador that the venues are of only school type standard, arises whether expenses for YOG are appropriately used with care. Would like to emphasise it is taxpayers money being used, would rather funds are used to subsidize the living expenses of poor, elderly residents living in one-room rental flats, rather than to be used on glamorous, one time short lived glory of events like YOG, which is of lesser importance to the world athletics at large.
Also the two mascots are an embarrasment to us, they are far too kawai or cute, for God’s sake YOG is for young adults, not for children. We do not have to copy cat China in designing mascots, at least show some level of creative originality and sophistication. We see this event organised on half hearted measures on a big wasteful budget, and the most glaring embarrasment is the lack of a National Stadium as a showcase to the world for such an event.
Yog is not even reported yet in the internaional newspapers, to rub salt into our wounds, so to speak. It is a real disappointment to us, even before the start of the Games.