SINGAPORE, May 31 (The Straits Times/ANN): The Safe Sport Commission is investigating separate complaints from two muay thai athletes - Lena Tan and Bryan Tee - against national coach and team manager Robert Yap.
Tan, 35, is alleging that she was unfairly dropped from the national team and the May 12-23 SEA Games in Hanoi, and that the subsequent appeal process against her exclusion was conducted in an unsafe manner by the Singapore Muay Thai Federation (SMF).
Central to her claims are that she was "punched and kicked" during a physical assessment by Yap when her appeal was heard.
The Singapore Police Force also confirmed that a report has been lodged regarding the incident.
Former national athlete Tee, 25, is alleging improper and abusive conduct from Yap that took place between 2014 and 2017.
In response to queries from The Straits Times, a Sport Singapore (SportSG) spokesman said: "Safe Sport received complaints from two muay thai athletes in March 2022 and have been in touch with the athletes and Singapore Muay Thai Federation to investigate the matter. We immediately offered support to the athletes as the well-being of the athletes was our primary concern.
"As the case is still under investigation, we are unable to share further details."
When contacted, an SMF spokesman said it is "currently looking into the matter with SportSG".
Established in 2019 by SportSG, the Safe Sport Commission handles matters such as education, prevention and report management relating to harassment and misconduct in Singapore sports. Tan had detailed her alleged woes in an 18-page report to Safe Sport, which included photographs of her bruises, WhatsApp conversations and email exchanges between her and Yap.
Her troubles began when she contracted Covid-19 in November 2021 and informed Yap that she wanted to pull out of the Dec 3-12 World Championships in Bangkok. Tan alleged that Yap was not pleased with her pullout and the "late notice" although she informed him of her diagnosis on the day she contracted the virus.
In January, Tan - who won a bronze medal at the 2019 SEA Games - was informed by Yap that her name would be submitted for the Hanoi Games but she had to achieve 80 per cent attendance for training.
Tan who holds a full-time job as a manager, was told that sessions will take place from 1.30pm on weekdays and at 2.30pm on Saturday.
After speaking to her teammates who also could not meet the timing due to their respective day jobs, Tan asked for an alternate training time to which she alleges that Yap rejected.
Subsequently, Tan wrote an official e-mail to Yap on Jan 15 about the situation and this led to her being removed from a WhatsApp group chat comprising other national athletes and Yap.
She also received an e-mail from Yap on Feb 4, informing her that she would not be participating in any competitions this year, including the SEA Games. In a subsequent e-mail, Yap said from "an assessment based on the last 12 months of training", the SMF felt that she was "unable to shake off the ring rust" and had not reached the proficiency level required, among other reasons.
Tan then appealed against the decision and she was informed on Feb 26 that her appeal would be heard the following day.
According to Tan, the appeal on Feb 27 against her exclusion from the SEA Games was heard by a panel comprising Yap, SMF president Clement Ong, Kickboxing Federation of Singapore vice-president Joel Lye and Wrestling Federation of Singapore operations manager Gabriel Huang. It also involved a physical assessment that was carried out with three rounds of three minutes of pad work with Yap.
Pad work is a training method used in martial arts to gauge hand speed, reaction time and punching power. A trainer holds up a pad which the athlete kicks and hits to mimic an actual fight.
Tan said that no criteria was given on how the pad work would be assessed and that during the session, Yap, whom she said is at least 20kg heavier than her, had allegedly rained low kicks to her left leg and punches to her head with "the same frequency and power as a fight".
She added that no medical personnel were on standby and she only had her gloves and no other protective equipment unlike in competitions, where head and chest guards are provided. Tan said the session left her with bruises on her leg and face and she sought medical treatment at a clinic two days later.
Her appeal was subsequently rejected.
Jeremy Jude, 36, coach at Jai Muay Thai gym told ST that it is normal for trainers to test the reaction of an athlete during pad work. But he added: "We would hit but not with excessive force. We are trained to draw reaction but not injure. The most important thing is safety for athletes.
"Accidents can happen but they are rare. It's the job of the trainer to ensure it does not result in an injury."
Recounting the incident, Tan said: "I was not in the right mental capacity after that incident and I took some time to come to terms with it. I am glad that there is an avenue like Safe Sport for me to raise this issue with.
"I love the sport and I wanted to share my story because enough is enough. We need better welfare."
Tee concurred, telling ST that he had learnt of Tan's report with Safe Sport and also decided to speak up. He said: "I just want a better environment and support for muay thai athletes. I listened and obeyed at that time because I badly wanted to represent Singapore in world competitions. Nobody should go through what I did."
In his statement to the commission, he alleged that at the 2017 SEA Games, he was forced to compete in the 54-57kg weight class, "even though I weighed 49kg and previously competed in the 45-48kg weight class". He was 19 years old then.
He alleged that this put him at "significant risk of damage to my body" as he had to endure strikes from bigger and stronger opponents "without the larger physique to absorb the punishment".
Calls and text messages to Yap by ST were not answered.
The latest allegations come just two days after ST reported that four Singaporean muay thai exponents were informed at the 11th hour by Yap that their trip to compete at the May 26-June 4 International Federation of Muaythai Associations (IFMA) Senior World Championships in Abu Dhabi was cancelled.
The athletes - SEA Games bronze medallist Cheryl Gwa, Lee De Jun, Chai Kai Quan and Tan Xuan Yun - said Yap had attributed the cancellation to "a sponsor pulling out as the team could not guarantee a medal" and that the team had not "fulfilled attendance requirements for training".
But Lee and Chai questioned the reasons cited and called for greater transparency from the SMF. - The Straits Times/ANN
