stop that and start traning your runner/jumper/sprinter. get it

If he should withdraw from the sporting scene as he was verbally abused, you should regret for his life.

We should embrace his talent, not put him down. Leave him alone, traumatic experiences stays for life.

all is good.

The crux of all your comments is this:

Does a sports writer have the right to make judgements or have opinions of what he observes?

If I do, then, as a reader, you have the same right to judge my story.

If I don’t, then, as a reader, you do not have the same right to judge my story.

Your comments indicate that I don’t have the right to make a judgement or opinion that you don’t agree with.

But you must be consistent. If I don’t have the right to make a judgement of what I’ve observed, then you cannot come in to say that my article is holier-than-thou in attitude.

What’s good for the gander is good for the goose.

So assuming both of us have the same rights, in that spirit, I disagree with your opinion that my article is holier-than-thou. My article states a fact – that as far as we can tell, there was no desire to cover any other finals at the inter-primary track and field and they were just zooming in on him. An uncomfortable state for anyone under such media scrutiny.

But thank you in any case for stating your judgement and opinion.

The only good I hope for is this: that Kang Yee Cher, blessed with such prodigious talent at such a young age, will one day run for Singapore and win a medal.

“After his 300m win, noticing the cameras, he keeps his eyes averted to the floor. He doesn’t celebrate his wins and walks off quietly.”

The holier-than-thou attitude of the whole story seems to absolve redsports of any blame.

It blames all his uneasiness on the mainstream media.

That is all I’m saying.

You may write an encouraging article but at the point where he finishes the race, with you snapping away at him, he has no idea about it.

He might think that this is a repeat of last year’s scenario, with all this attention.

Therefore, you are, at that point in time, making him feel uncomfortable.

Unless you spoke to him of course, but I’d think you would mention it.

My main point is that you seem to accuse the mainstream media being the sole cause of kang’s uneasiness and I think it is rather unfair as you are not doing anything much differently from them.

You both took pictures of him finishing the race, you took pictures of him before the race, I don’t think he spoke to you either as I don’t see any quotes. You two aren’t very different in the way you behaved.

You can’t really place blame solely on them, while thinking you are entirely innocent.

I just don’t think it is fair.

As far as I know, there is no article out in the mainstream media about him yet, regarding his recent wins, so I think we cannot really comment on this.

Good job on winning and all the best in the future!

“Certainly an uncomfortable experience for anyone, never mind a youth.” – refers to his uncomfortable experience of being accused of cheating by the media. (cf. the paragraph)

Ask any youth athlete, it is always a dream to see his victory pictures in the news. It is not the shooting per se that caused the discomfort and definitely not by a photographer who is there shooting the entire event vis-a-vis a photographer who has come down just to shoot him with the sole intention of stirring controversy.

I’m surprised by your sensitivity, because the take home message for me after reading this article on Red Sports is a reminder of the power of media (be it mainstream or non-mainstream) in making or breaking an athlete. It goes down to the angle/intention of the story determined by the newsmaker.

So I’d give credit to this news for finally bringing some closure to the unpleasant saga Yee Cher went through – I don’t remember any news anywhere confirming his age. If the media started it, they are responsible for resolving it instead of leaving it hanging or worse, continuing to serve as a buffer for the controversy.

My reply: Yes, I was taking pictures of him, as well as the other finals too from Monday to Thursday. Yes, I do know my presence may cause him to feel uncomfortable but my story on him is factual and meant to be encouraging to him.

Your comment: In light of this behaviour, I find the self-righteous tone that you adopt throughout the report is rather ironic. (sic)

My reply: You give no indication of which sentence, phrase or word suggests a self-righteous tone. If you point it out, it would be a lot clearer for all. It is rather a sweeping unsubstantiated statement.

Your comment: Clearly you have not thought about the consequences of your seemingly innocent actions.

My reply: Yee Cher’s athletic ability is worthy of a story. He is a an outstanding talent who should be encouraged to represent Singapore. Hence the story.

Your comment: You have not (sic) right to pass judgement on anyone in your current position.

My reply: I am not sure what judgement I seem to have passed. On the mainstream media? I am just stating what they did – which was to show up to just cover Yee Cher. I noticed it because I was there on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. And I was the only photojournalist there until Thursday. They showed up for Yee Cher’s final only. Then they left.

Of course, a minor point is that your comment is passing judgement on me, thus a fundamental contradiction of your overall comment. Seems the kettle is black after all?

There is a fine line drawn between taking a picture for news, and taking a picture for a “tabloid”. Through my years of shooting, it’s the “tabloid” kind of photo taking that generates the uncomfortable experience. Two photographers can stand side by side at the same position but one person might lead the subject to feel more uncomfortable than the other.

While at Red Sports, we have seen people from the mainstream media try to dig up negative publicity about school sports. I am sure uncle les is making a statement not out of pure instinct, but by experience and an understanding of the trends.

We try our very best to remain neutral and put forth the stories to our readers. But sometimes it is difficult to let readers know the situation and the circumstances leading up to the event happening.

My point is that he is judging other people.

Saying that their behaviour is making yee cher feel uncomfortable.

His tone seems to excuse himself from any blame but he is as responsible as anyone else for generating that “uncomfortable experience” by taking pictures of yee cher.

From the angle of the shots, it is quite clear he was at the finish line, probably just clicking away as well.

It is his fingerpointing and judgemental tone that angers me.