http://www.straitstimes.com/ST+Forum/Online+Story/STIStory_269396.html
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>So what if paddlers are China-born? They are true champions
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WHILE we are all feeling happy about an Olympic medal finally, it is likely that many Singaporeans will downplay the significance of this silver medal in table tennis, because the players who attained it for Singapore are China-born. These could be the same people who cheered their hearts out on the day of the semi-finals, or people who didn't bother to watch because there weren't 'born-and- bred' Singaporeans.
I find it heart-wrenching that athletes who represent Singapore do not get as much support as they should, and face criticism, even after winning a medal. Our table tennis players are Singaporean, although they were born in China. This is a fact, otherwise they would not have been allowed to play for Singapore. I do hope Singaporeans do not make a habit of harping on the fact that it was 'China-born' who won for us, and not 'true Singaporeans'.
If someone really feels that foreign talent winning for us is not as glamorous, I hope he can be proud of Singapore for one reason. The United States and Canadian table-tennis teams include several China-born players, as does South Korea, which we just beat. However, it is only the foreign talent that Singapore has that is now the silver medallist in table tennis at the Olympics. Does this not show that Singapore's foreign talent scheme is working better than that of other countries and we provide better training and have better coaches?
I view all our athletes as representatives of Singapore, and I am proud of all of them. True Singaporeans support all the athletes who compete on behalf of our country in the Olympics, and support bonding of Singaporeans via the common aim of a medal. I hope this medal and the performance of all athletes in these Olympics will be a source of pride to all Singaporeans. I am very proud of our table tennis team for their hard work and fighting spirit during the semi-finals.
Audrey Chia (Miss)
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>So what if paddlers are China-born? They are true champions
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->
WHILE we are all feeling happy about an Olympic medal finally, it is likely that many Singaporeans will downplay the significance of this silver medal in table tennis, because the players who attained it for Singapore are China-born. These could be the same people who cheered their hearts out on the day of the semi-finals, or people who didn't bother to watch because there weren't 'born-and- bred' Singaporeans.
I find it heart-wrenching that athletes who represent Singapore do not get as much support as they should, and face criticism, even after winning a medal. Our table tennis players are Singaporean, although they were born in China. This is a fact, otherwise they would not have been allowed to play for Singapore. I do hope Singaporeans do not make a habit of harping on the fact that it was 'China-born' who won for us, and not 'true Singaporeans'.
If someone really feels that foreign talent winning for us is not as glamorous, I hope he can be proud of Singapore for one reason. The United States and Canadian table-tennis teams include several China-born players, as does South Korea, which we just beat. However, it is only the foreign talent that Singapore has that is now the silver medallist in table tennis at the Olympics. Does this not show that Singapore's foreign talent scheme is working better than that of other countries and we provide better training and have better coaches?
I view all our athletes as representatives of Singapore, and I am proud of all of them. True Singaporeans support all the athletes who compete on behalf of our country in the Olympics, and support bonding of Singaporeans via the common aim of a medal. I hope this medal and the performance of all athletes in these Olympics will be a source of pride to all Singaporeans. I am very proud of our table tennis team for their hard work and fighting spirit during the semi-finals.
Audrey Chia (Miss)
