Tournament director suffers multiple checks from angry netizens

PETALING JAYA: The chess competition tournament director who allegedly singled out a 12-year-old girl for her dress is now facing fierce backlash from netizens.

Pictures allegedly of one Sophian A. Yusof posted with messages calling for his resignation went viral.

His picture received more than 2,000 shares on Facebook along with angry remarks against him.

Netizens also found his Facebook page and flooded it with criticism.

Previously, it was reported that the organiser disputed the girl’s version of events at the National Scholastic Chess Championship in Putrajaya on April 14.

A news portal also said the tournament director lodged a police report over a Facebook post by the girl’s coach.

The girl was allegedly told mid-game by the chief arbiter that her short-sleeved knee-length dress was “improper”.

The dress was allegedly deemed “a temptation from a certain angle, far, far away”.

The girl’s mother, Chin Wai Ling, said the 10pm pronouncement left her no time to buy pants for the next day’s 9am start time.

The girl, who is Kuala Lumpur district champion, withdrew from the tournament the next day.

Wanita PKR chief Zuraida Kamaruddin said yesterday that the organiser should have been more “humane and diplomatic” over the issue.

“I am very agitated over the issue. I feel for the girl as if she were my own daughter,” she said.

On Friday the tournament director told The Star that the organiser would refrain from making further comments until investigations were done.