YOUTH and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh has found herself in the line of fire across social media platforms for allegation of “insensitivity” after showering praises at Thai men’s singles shuttler Kunlavut Vitidsarn for bagging silver medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Amid the accreditation controversy following revelation that the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria has brought along his wife and son to Paris, she has obviously become an easy target of detractors who are seemingly on a fault-finding mission with her ministry.
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This came about soon after Bersatu Youth chief Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal fired a salvo at the Segambut MP to “be wary of the sensitivity of our athletes and more importantly the feelings of supporters from among our people”.
YB Menteri Belia dan Sukan Malaysia, tolonglah jaga sensitiviti atlit kita dan lebih penting perasaan penyokong dari kalangan rakyat kita 🇲🇾
🤦♂️ pic.twitter.com/cwQkjhEUPO
— Wan Ahmad Fayhsal (@wanfayhsal) August 7, 2024
Although many netizens blasted the Machang MP for being petty to the extent of having to politicise sports, a number of opposition-slant social media influencers quickly capitalised on Wan Fayhsal’s tweet to put Yeoh on the spot.
One of them is United Rights of Malaysian Party (Urimai) interim council member Dr Shamsher Singh Khind who levelled a stinging reminder to the DAP lawmaker by reminding her that she “is in Paris on an official duty”, hence should abstain from taking photographs “especially with (foreign) athletes who’ve knocked out our athletes”.
“What rubbish you are his fan? If you want to act childish, travel using your own money or your husband’s money!” berated the Penang lawyer who was himself a former DAP member in a well-received Facebook post which has garnered 10,000 likes, 4,700 comments and 2,000 shares.
Fortunately for Yeoh, there are two sides of the coin as netizens are divided in their stance on the matter.
Those who are more diplomatically inclined saw no issue with Yeoh posing with Vitidsarn for a photo although some netizens wondered if the Indian Sports Minister, too, has posed for a photo with national shuttler Lee Zii Jia who defeated Lakshya Sen in the bronze medal play-off
In all fairness, professional photographer Vicneswaran Kuppusamy summed up the polemic best by stating that while sportsmanship is about respecting and admiring talent regardless of nationality, the backlash against Yeoh had emanated from her “fangirl” caption which was poorly timed.
“Referring to herself as a ‘fangirl’ might have seemed trivial and insensitive given the context. A more neutral caption could have acknowledged Vitidsarn’s achievement without overshadowing the efforts and emotions of our own athletes” – Aug 8, 2024
