‘Don’t quote me, please!’

FRIDAY, JULY 18, 2014 - The Malay Mail

THERE needs to be a major shake-up in the majority of our sports organisations if we want to move forward.

If we continue the way we are, there are bound to be more heartaches, disappointments and failures.

Despite sports generally having been elevated to professional level, the results have not been encouraging. There is plenty of money available for sports and ultra-modern facilities are in abundance, yet, we find our athletes struggling to match past performances.

A major hindrance to the achievement of excellence is the administration of sports, which leaves much to be desired. Many associations are plagued by presidents and top officials who will not lift a finger to keep their associations on an even keel or aid their athletes who participate in championships abroad — but they will be the first to line up for overseas assignments.

Then, we have officials who will not say anything against their organisations even if they strongly feel that something is wrong. They do not want to ruffle any feathers and put their position in jeopardy.

But when you talk to them, they will tell you all the ills of the association and how it can be better managed. At the end of the conversation, they will come up with this famous line: “Don’t quote me, please.”

They want the dirty work to be done by someone else.

And when the article appears, those who had given the information will be the first to bring it to the attention of the presidents or higher-ups. Why? Because they want to be in the good books of their superiors to safeguard their position.

How can we expect any change when the officials play the ‘two-timing’ game?

Maybe, it is time the athletes revolted and demanded that the right people manage them. But then again, most of the athletes can hardly take care of themselves.

Still, the current situation needs to be addressed immediately. Will those who are sincere, passionate, have fresh ideas and act professionally please stand up and save Malaysian sports?

Tony Mariadass is a sports journalist
with more than three decades of
experience and is passionate about
local sports. He can be reached at
tmariadass@gmail.com.
Twitter handle: @tmariadass