PETALING JAYA: Men’s doubles shuttler Aaron Chia has advised his teammates, including the younger players in the national camp, not to be affected by the negative comments directed at them.
The world No. 2 said such remarks are inevitable for athletes, especially with the widespread use of social media among the public.
Aaron himself has also been the target of online criticism after producing below-par results in several European tournaments last month, but he chose not to respond to any of the negative comments.
As such, he believes the best approach is to ignore the insults and harsh words thrown their way.
“To be honest, it’s impossible not to look at your phone these days. Everyone checks their phone. But to me, it’s not something that should be taken too seriously,” said Aaron when met at Badminton Academy Malaysia (ABM) in Bukit Kiara yesterday.
“What’s important is that players shouldn’t care too much about those comments because people have the freedom to say whatever they want. Most of them don’t even use their real accounts to comment.
“If they’re using fake accounts, it means they don’t have the courage. I’ll be honest, if someone has the guts to say it to my face, I can accept that. But if they hide behind fake accounts, why should I care about what they say? They don’t even dare to show themselves.”
He added that it is difficult, if not impossible, to stop such behaviour from happening.
“You really can’t control this kind of thing. Even if you report the account, they can just create another fake one, or 10 more. Blocking them doesn’t make a difference. Just let them write what they want if it makes them happy. The players should just focus on their performance,” he added.
Last week, the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) were forced to issue an official statement condemning the actions of irresponsible individuals who had gone as far as endangering the safety of the players through their attacks.
As such, Aaron said that if the situation were to reach that level, he would not hesitate to take appropriate action.
“I mean, there’s nothing I can do about it. I don’t really care what they say as long as nothing happens. But if something were to really happen, then I’ll take action.
“If it doesn’t, and they just want to talk, then let them. I’m the one playing anyway.
“If they want to talk, just let them talk.”
