Masters swimmer Cindy Ong has criticised the practice of age discrimination in sports, which has led to increased barriers to entry for older athletes.
This follows a recent incident where Ong was allegedly informed that she had been barred from competing in the Malaysia Open Athletics Championships, despite meeting the merit requirements.
Additionally, the mother of three had beaten national swimmer Angelina Chan and 50-metre freestyle record-holder Chui Lai Kwan at the Supersharkz Short-course Sprint held in Shah Alam last December.
“Put my age aside, put whatever I have said aside. Even if we go on a merit basis, I qualify in almost every event that I've competed in,” Ong told Malaysiakini.
The 38-year-old shared that many internationally-renowned swimmers - such as Ranomi Kromowidjojo, Michael Phelps and Nicholas Santos - have gone on to become world champions and break world records despite being above the age of 25.
“All these big names, I mean, really big names out there. They are all above the age of 25.
“You don't really peak at 17 or 18. In Malaysia, they like to just peak at 17 or 18 and quit swimming after SPM.
“The person has not even fully developed yet. The strength is not even 100 percent there yet. They still have potential.
“Why put that barrier there arbitrarily? So, I feel like this is age discrimination,” she said.
Masters swimmers normally participate in older age group categories - which begins from ages 25 to 29 before increasing in five-year increments.
Ong's comments were made in relation to Malaysia Swimming’s (MS) decision to exclude masters swimmers - such as herself - from this year’s iteration of the Malaysia Open.
However, the decision is puzzling, given Ong's previous participation in the national meet in 2018. She was 33 years old then.
Issue blown out of proportion
Ong lamented on the extensive coverage that the issue has received, which has drawn unwanted attention to herself.
She commented that many news portals had sensationalised the issue without directly contacting her about the matter.
“I wanted to just go in (to the Malaysia Open) low-key and make my point - but because this has blown out of proportion. I'm used as a pawn to basically shoot at them. I mean, there goes my chances of ever competing in Malaysia again.
“Now, if I step foot in front of (other swimmers), I think everybody’s going to look at me weird and think that 'she’s the girl who made a lot of noise'. I don't think I can compete here again," she said.
She fears that such coverage will also affect her son - who is a competitive swimmer under Kuala Lumpur - when he competes at his next swimming meet next month.
MS strikes back
It was reported yesterday that MS secretary-general Mae Chen denied informing Ong that she was not allowed to participate in the national meet.
Chen was reported as saying that the national body had been forced to tighten entry to the Malaysia Open, in order to accommodate Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOP).
The national meet - set to be held from March 4 to 6 - will serve as the final qualifying event for this year’s Sea Games in Vietnam. Ong was seeking qualification for the 50m butterfly event.
The Ipoh-born woman expressed her hopes of securing new sponsors to keep her masters swimmer career afloat, as she does not receive financial aid from the government.
Ong depends on sponsorships to cover the substantial cost of her training and travel expenses for competitions.
In 2021, she was ranked as the World No 1 in the women’s butterfly for the 35-39 age group, with a record of 26.71 seconds in the 50-metre freestyle. - Mkini
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.