Before you can teach them to sing Majulah Singapura, Shuttlers Zhang Beiwen and Gu Juan had left the Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) in April and July, respectively.
The two players, who are both 18 years old, were part of the 10-member youth team — consisting of five boys and five girls — who beat Malaysia to win an historic bronze for Singapore at the 2007 World Junior Championships in New Zealand last October.
Gu was also a member of the silver-medal winning women’s team at last December’s SEA Games in Korat, Thailand. Graduates of the Foreign Sports Talent Scheme, the two players had received their citizenship in May last year.
Very impressive achievements, but what happened after that? According to sources (unwilling to be identified as usual), Gu has returned to China to further her studies, while Zhang’s whereabouts remain unknown. It has been reported that both women had some issues with their coach. It would be nice if NSmen can quit if we have issues with our commanders, but no. We are a different kind of citizens.
Our fellow citizens from China do us proud in the international sports arena. People want to hug them (sweaty after a game), shake hands with them (sweaty after a game), get autographs from them. Nobody wants to give our sweaty NSmen a hug. We’re a dime a dozen. These folks are gems. Sure, I would be honoured to have a fellow citizen like them. Sure, I would like to be inclusive and accommodating, but is all this just 一厢情愿?
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