TODAY’s commentary piece seems to “belittle” Joseph Schooling’s hard work and sacrifices, says former ST sports journalist
TODAY’s commentary piece seems to “belittle” Olympian Joseph Schooling’s hard work and sacrifices by calling into question his long-term National Service (NS) deferment in less than a week after the athlete’s exit from Tokyo Olympic 2020, said former sports journalist of The Straits Times (ST) Chua Siang Yee on Wednesday (4 Aug).
The commentary piece, entitled 'Tackling the critical question of Schooling’s NS deferment after his poor Tokyo Olympics performance,' was published by TODAY on Tuesday (3 Aug).
The piece was penned by Associate Professor of Law at Singapore Management University (SMU) Eugene Tan Kheng Boon, who was the team manager of Singapore’s 2004 Athens Olympics national swim team. He is also a former Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP).
Mr Tan highlighted that the young athlete has been on long-term NS deferment since 2014, adding that Schooling also receives a stipend of at least S$8,400 monthly by being in the top band of SportSG’s spexScholarship programme.
He observed that the “telltale signs” of Schooling’s downward trajectory were starting to show after he defended his title in the 2018 Asian Games, especially when Schooling failed to qualify for the 100m butterfly semi-finals at the World Championships in South Korea 2019.
The Olympian “did not look in the best physical shape” during the 2019 SEA Games, said Mr Tan, citing national training centre head coach Gary Tan who had previously commented that the athlete might need to “work towards getting fitter”.
Schooling failed to defend his gold medal in the 100m butterfly event at the Tokyo Olympics on 29 July, as he finished last in his heat after clocking a time of 53.12s, placing him 44th overall out of 55.
Following his exit from the Tokyo Olympics, Mr Tan noted that it now comes to the Ministry of Defence’s (Mindef) decision on whether to extend Schooling’s NS deferment, and if so, for how long.
“The question is whether there is strong merit in extending Schooling’s long-term NS deferment, notwithstanding his lackadaisical performances in the pool in the last two to three years,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, Mr Chua, who claimed that he may have covered the subject for ST for almost four years, took to his Facebook on Wednesday to voice his disagreement with the author of the commentary piece.
“To call into question his NS deferment, barely a week after his Olympic exit, is to belittle all the hard work and sacrifices that he, his team and his family have endured over the years, not to mention the flurry of medals he has helped Singapore win.
“And it is exactly this mercenary-like attitude which must change if we want to encourage talented athletes to chase their sporting dreams,” he wrote.
Mr Chua went on to say that his past experience in sports journalism has taught him that “certainty is a rarity in the realm of sports”.
“Progression is not always linear, even if you bust your guts in training every single day. What looks a certainty on paper doesn’t necessarily play out in practice,” he explained.
“You might beat the great Lin Dan one day, but you could lose to his less illustrious team-mate Chen Long the next (see Lee Chong Wei at the 2016 Olympics).”
Among other examples include professional golfer Rory McIlroy who became one of only three golfers – after Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods – to win four majors before the age of 25 in 2014, but he has not won a major since, said Mr Chua.
“The point is that athletic performance goes through peak and troughs. World champions could go through lull periods and struggle to hit the same heights, or strike gold again when we – and they – least expect it,” he added.
As such, Mr Chua argued that Schooling may have had “a few bad swims”, but it does not mean that Singapore should “immediately reconsider” its support for the Olympian.
“A barren few years doesn’t take anything away from the fact that Joseph is still an elite swimmer, albeit one who is going through a rough patch. Difficult questions must be asked, and they will be.
“But, considering all the facts – Joseph is only 26, has a track record unmatched by any Singaporean athlete, still managed to qualify outright for the Olympics, and has never shied away from his NS obligations – perhaps it is more constructive to ask how we can help the most talented swimmer Singapore has ever produced to bounce back, instead of putting a timer on his head the minute he falls short,” he asserted.
