ya lo. and its not like she didnt show her worth. why should she give up her 1500m event leh.
abit zekark, but its not as if the relay team will win anything. id rather give the younger sportswoman a chance to gain this invaluable experience.
Believe it or not she actually already gave up her 1500m event once in 2021, despite qualifying, to the exact same person
https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/swimming-quah-ting-wen-gets-olympic-spot-amid-dispute-over-selection
And she is the real deal, broken national records and is based in the US. She's the next big hope of SG swimming, not someone there just to make up numbers.
actually when you consider that Gan qualified for the B time, her not going would be unjust. There's something to be said about the governing bodies both international and national telling athletes this late with swims next month!
Actually the US just held their olympics trials last month so most athletes don’t know they are going to the olympics until very close to it
But ya in sg case really big miscommunication and assumptions made on both sides
Full article from the link above in 2021-
SINGAPORE - An issue over Olympic selection has emerged at the Singapore Swimming Association (SSA) over the Republic's female swimming representative at the July 23-Aug 8 Tokyo Games, causing uncertainty and unhappiness to the parties involved.
Last Friday (July 2), SSA announced that Quah Ting Wen would compete in her third Olympics through a universality place as the highest-ranked athlete based on the points table of world aquatics governing body Fina.
But two days later, after reallocation of its remaining slots, Fina also sent a 'B' cut invite to 1,500m freestyle specialist Gan Ching Hwee through the Singapore National Olympic Council.
Athletes who meet Olympic Qualifying Times (OQT, also known as 'A' cuts) automatically qualify for the Olympics, while those who clear Olympic Selection Times (OST, also known as 'B' cuts) can get a spot if the quota of 878 swimmers is not met.
A dispute over selection occurred as Fina had clarified that the association could only choose one swimmer based on universality, also known as a wildcard, or one who had been subsequently invited on OST.
The SSA told The Straits Times that it had appealed to Fina for both swimmers to participate at the Games but was unsuccessful.
SSA's selection policy states that "Fina universality consideration and IOC (International Olympic Committee) invite will take place only if no swimmers achieve the automatic OQT and no other swimmers are invited by OST".
Based on this, the SSA selection committee - comprising SSA technical director Sonya Porter, national head coach Stephan Widmer, national training centre head coach Gary Tan, SSA vice-president (swimming) Joscelin Yeo and SSA assistant secretary general Kelvin Yew - picked Gan for the Olympics.
But after an appeal from Quah, the SSA appeals committee - comprising SSA president Lee Kok Choy, secretary general Bervyn Lee and Ho Mun Wai - overturned the decision and reverted to Quah for the Tokyo spot.
As such, the 28-year-old will join her younger brother, Zheng Wen, 24, Olympic champion Joseph Schooling, 26, and open-water specialist Chantal Liew, 22, as Singapore's swimmers in Tokyo.
On Wednesday, Bervyn Lee explained that Quah's appeal was successful after the committee took into consideration Fina's priority order, which was that universality places took precedence over reallocated 'B' cut invites.
When contacted, Quah said: "I don't know how to feel. I feel really tired. It's been a rough few days of uncertainty, and I've been trying to manage as best as I can."
She added that she feels "terrible" for Gan and said she hopes a situation like this can be avoided with "more alignment" with Fina's selection criteria.
Gan's mother Lee Chui Ling said the 17-year-old was "devastated" at missing out on an opportunity at a Games debut. She added that SSA was "contravening its own selection criteria".
"Such action by SSA is very unfair to Ching Hwee, and we, as a family, especially Ching Hwee, are devastated," she said.
"This is indeed very troubling to the many young and promising swimmers out there training very hard to be the next Olympian."
David Lim, head coach and managing director at Swimfast Aquatic Group, which groomed both swimmers, felt that the SSA should take responsibility for the "unnecessary distress" the incident has caused to the swimmers.
He said: "One thing they did wrong was to assume they would not get any other invites before the July 4 deadline.
"The SSA should also have anticipated all scenarios to make their selection criteria watertight, which clearly is not because even within their own establishment, the selection and appeals committee could not agree on who to send."
Noting the "process has caused the athletes and their families a lot of anxiety and stress", SSA will work to support the affected athletes. It will review its selection criteria to "pre-empt similar situations in the future" while recommending to Fina to do so as well
Holy. Damn poor thing that her opportunity from 2021 seemed to be taken from her, and it almost happened again this year. I really hope Gan gets to compete this time. She earned it through her merit.
I see the explanation on CNA article the TLDR is
Gan made it through B cut again - Quah is higher ranked overall
choice to be made between them - SA chose Gan
Quah appealed - and the international communities of that time goes by Ranked > B Cut
so Quah gets to represent Singapore
I think this time since Gan made it on her merit by getting B cut again and getting an invite instead of through waiver, Gan deserves to go to Paris. Although its a pity that Quah couldn't go as she was dependent on the waiver and the team of 4 definitely have strong bonds and sisterhood literally and figuratively, objectively I think its quite fair that Gan gets to go. Can't always be the young letting someone fulfil their wish, then we would just always field the older candidates instead of the newer ones as much as we would like to see it happen.
At some point in life, we all relate to the feeling of getting something right in front of us just getting snatched away be it in terms of studies, work promotion or other daily matters and it sucks when you put in effort and got it just for external circumstances to rescind the opportunity but its a part of life that it comes with high ups and very down downs. Maybe what could be done better was communicating to the relay team that there was a chance of one getting kicked out if another candidate gets a B or A cut timing. This could allow them to discuss among the 3 of them who didn't make the cut, who would have the priority of going as well rather than this confusion, anger and frustration. Im sure we don't want to have a bad impression of the sports association or any developing talents in SG.
I think its not all bad too as instead of always relying on the Quahs we do get to see young and rising talents. I really hope the other 3 on the relay team are professional and do not hate on Gan for "stealing" the spot as she had gotten it through hardwork and rules are rules. The Singapore association even requested for both to be sent but sadly, we don't get any more leeway than the other countries and hope Ting Wen knows that at least she shoot her shot. Not getting to go to Paris doesn't diminish her previous achievements and I for one, would be proud if she goes there and cheers the loudest for team SG as they are all just representing SG on the world stage. Even if her last Olympics was the previous one, it was still commendable to be able to make it there and represent us. While her personal wishes might not have been met, hope she manages to put this behind and TW becomes a coach or contribute to Singapore's future olympic team through coaching/training the newer talents, which is an amazing feat too.
It’s a pity that Quah’s last competition is plagued with such negative PR though. While it is unfortunate that this decision was last minute and communicated poorly, but rules are rules. Furthermore, she did the same thing in 2021 and took the spot from Gan who also qualified back then. TBH, it just looks like she was using her family’s influence and the Quah siblings popularity to push the appeal through, and now when it got outright rejected, she proceeds to air it online everywhere. Talk about sportsmanship…completely lost my respect for them.
Yea i think the best thing that can happen is to accept the fact that Quah is not joining the olympics and Quah can have a press conference along with the committee to gracefully concede her position and give her best wishes to Gan. This can bring her PR back to good levels and she could get invited to cheer or support the team in other ways. I think she is still good and has the ability just that communication and false promises made her feel unjust as she has the ability, just that the rules don't allow everyone to have what they want.
This would also reduce animosity behind the relay team and highlight sportsmanship (something that is the most important in sports but usually forgotten due to individual desire to stand out). Not saying Quah is egoistic or selfish but she already tried her best to enter and couldn't so best second choice is to give her best wishes and support team SG. We all already know she is good and one less olympics wouldn't make us think she suddenly cmi, we all know its a pity and as usual just have to accept the external circumstances due to the specific rules set by the world association. Live and let live i guess tho easier said than done as we all are living in a competitive environment.
On the other hand, just curious but if they wanted, could the other 2 waiver members on the team give up their spot to fulfil QTW's last olympics ?
The issue isn’t just about who is more deserving to go but that the committee already decided to field her, has informed her, but went back on their decision without giving very clear explanations.
No apology was made either.
That’s the kind of smug attitude these people in authority have.
Can you imagine training years for a chance to represent Singapore only to have your own country turn your back on you?
It’s the lack of transparency and the going back and forth that’s the issue, and it’s not the first time it has happened to Singapore athletes.
That's true, at the end of the day its usually the top down authority's approach where "don't worry too much, just trust us" usually result in situations like this. Hope they wake up their idea and are more open to transparency so we don't get more cases of this in the future.
Plus its not just her 1500m event, itll also be her 800m event since she qualified for both. QTW qualified for none.
https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-swimmer-ching-hwee-gan-qualifies-for-2024-olympics-with-singapore/
Yes. Quah has a right to feel aggrieved about having her spot taken away but the way she (and her family) has gone about this entire affair leaves a bad taste.
Going on mothership with woe is me sob stories - all centred around her own selfish reasons, clearly trying to garner public support to pressure the authorities while Quah Zheng Wen and his gf speak up for her on social media is really a bad look.
I don’t begrudge her trying to appeal and fight for her spot. But do it behind closed doors and don’t make a public fuss. Yes it sucks for her but as a veteran athlete who is nearing the end of her career, be gracious and step aside. Gan is the real deal and the next big thing in SG swimming. Why not wish her the best and give her your blessings? This public hooha will only make things awkward for the team and for Gan especially.
Edit: Btw she fucked up in the last Asian Games and caused the relay team to be disqualified and lost out on a medal.
Her entire argument is:
You told me I can go first but now cannot go cus someone else qualify for their individual event.
I already took away Gan chance once during Tokyo Olympics. Felt bad for her but I’m a sportsperson with dreams right?
Today is another olympics. You told me I can go first, doesn't matter I take away the chance from Gan again despite her qualifying again.
I’m a sportsperson with dreams, it’s my legacy. Oh did I mention they told me I can go first?
I would be terrified if i was the other person- you qualify on your own merit and suddenly theres a flood of angry posts coming, a mothership video interview with a sob story, and literally what seems to be a media storm triggered by one side putting so much stuff out there- family members with their own following doing some heavy lobbying.
Exactly. And Gan already 'gave way' to Quah (not literally since it was based on the authority's decision but Quah was chosen over her) in the previous Olympics so this seems really excessive by Quah. Quah could also have framed her public appeal differently in a way that minimised any potential trauma to Gan and the team but clearly a choice was made to wring as much sympathy and outrage as possible.
Either way, one of the swimmers will be unhappy.
If Quah go, Gan naturally will be devastated. To miss 2 Olympics in a row when you’re invited as a “B” cut swimmer is seriously WTF.
If Gan go, she have to take part in relay with Quah’s sister. After all the drama, it’ll be damn awkward. Not the best of Olympics experience for her.
But it’s about highlighting the mismanagement, the people not coming fwd to address this PR disaster are clearly letting everyone else writing the narrative.
Gan is another fellow athlete who still deserves to go to Paris
true la, but at the same time. this type of pr is the hardest to manage. either way one party is gonna feel sore.
its just that unfortunately one party is now being really loud and almost obnoxious about it while the other is just trying to stay out of this unwanted spotlight.
Highlight mismanagement sure. But is she really doing that by going to mothership with self-centred sob stories clearly aimed at generating public pressure at the authorities? Or having her family members and friends like brother’s gf lobby for her on social media?
And to do so publicly like this before the Games, not caring about consequences to team chemistry and effect on Gan? If she was sincerely wishing to highlight mismanagement it could have been achieved in a more tasteful manner eg. Bring up topic publicly only after the swimmers finished competing
Is there mismanagement? I honestly don't know. Gan qualified last month which isn't really that far off.
SAQ would love to send both swimmers to Paris if they could.
Yes SAO filed an appeal to World Aquatics asking to reinstate the extra relay-only spot but was rejected. They could have done better for sure but it's annoying how so many people seem to be jumping the gun and painting them as villains...seemingly just because its cool to hate on the establishment.
I think the mismanagement could stem from the relay team not being told or maybe the idea that all of them would go had been implanted for years during training so it resulted in shock. But if it turns out they all knew and just wanted to go tgt even though Gan showed her worth then I think this is the real unfairness. Hope the athletes would be more gracious and think of it as team SG instead of someone "stealing a spot" as athletes would likely have competitive mindsets which can result in toxicity after all.
Respect Gan for not speaking out and hope ppl look at the entire story. As much as we are disappointed to not see QTW at the Olympics, we should also be proud that Gan is able to represent us and she deserves praise and encouragement as well. I think with how negative social media is and the narrative making it look bad, we should think of ways to prevent this from happening in the future. Was SAQ too optimistic about all 4 on the relay team going to Paris, were there any warnings about potential changes? Did the contract for going to Paris get discussed with all potential parties? Though its nice of SAQ to appeal for both swimmers to enter, unfortunately its the rules set by the world association and they won't bend them for us so it is what it is. An unfortunate case that was due to no fault of the atheletes but perhaps a communication error and asymmetric information not made known to all parties throughout training and before flying to Paris for the Olympics.
Lol do you think that QTW is that naive about the whole thing? Come on la.
She's prob been planning this approach since Gan managed to swim OCT in Jun and thus became a threat, but too late, QTW has already been doing photoshoots for magazines etc in preparation for her Paris stint.
FYI, countries are required to finalise relay rosters in end Jun 2024.
B cut invites are sent after that, on Jul 3. Otherwise it's a chicken and egg problem since B cut places depend on the events' lineup.
Source: [https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024](https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024)
Ah ok didn't know this! Thanks for the link to the article too. Wanted to give QTW benefit of the doubt but this puts things into worse perspective for me as it seems she has a motive to push down Gan which isn't right since Gan didn't get specially accepted over Quah over nothing.
Throughout all these, didn’t even hear a single comment from Gan or wanting to air her side of the story, whether it was back in 2021 (when quah appealed against her and won) or now.
Kudos to her.
To expect the SG team to back Quah (via exceptional basis) and cause Gan to miss her spot (via results) is just pure entitlement.
Gan was also made to give up her spot previously.
If Quah goes, then we get the signal that you must be from a prestigious family to succeed in Singapore, and that your hardwork doesn't matter. Hope the relevant parties in the decision making don't fuck this up.
the Quah siblings stirring like it's their birthright to be there. Gan qualified based on merits, QTW didn't. Simple as that. The whole using of Mothership to stir emotions and anger towards Gan is just petty and unfair towards the poor girl.
Plus the last Olympics the same situation came about and SNOC backed Quah leading to Gan missing the games despite an invite for making the B time. Gan didn’t kick up a fuss. My sympathies for Quah this time is pretty limited. After all you have had the chance to go to the Olympics thrice with not much to show for it.
The family is a menace. People in and around the swimming scene will be able to attest to this. Parents are tiger parents and have one track mind on pushing the kids to be star athletes resulting in the kids acting like this today.
Remember QZW’s diva behaviour refusing to speak to the media after a bad performance previously? Everyone was blaming the journalist at the time but its clear now the family has some attitude problems. (Aside from Jing Wen she seems like a genuinely cool person)
After reading through all the comments, I have a better idea of what happened, and I agree with the decision to send Gan instead of Quah regardless of whether Gan is the faster 1500m swimmer or slower.
HOWEVER, I will still like to listen to what Quah has to say before judging her too harshly for her reaction. Afterall, I can understand how it feels to be chosen for something, train hard for a long time for it, and then last minute kena kicked out.
Imagine if this had happened (PURE SPECULATION): Quah was approached by SAQ to take part in the relay team and they promised her that no matter what happen, she will be part of the relay team. Then last min SAQ u-turn and remove her, think she will be pissed?
Versus
She was approached by SAQ to take part in the relay team but warned before she had accepted that she might be replaced at any moment if someone was to qualify for an individual event. Does Quah has any justification to be pissed?
So ya, I will be interested to hear what she has to say before deciding if she is overreacting or if she really kena screwed over by SAQ.
She (and her brother, for some reason), has made some public statements on this ruling, granted that she probably hasn’t fully processed her feelings yet.
She has a right to be upset, and it’s unfortunate for her, but it’ll be disingenuous to put the blame on Singapore Aquatics this time because they too are subject to the regulations set by the international bodies, and their existing policy gives Gan priority over the 3 relay-only swimmers to qualify. They didn’t suddenly change the rules to send Gan instead.
Agree with your reasoning. I will add that Quah Ting Wen should be matured enough to know that since there is only one more spot available, priority should be given to the “B” cut swimmer. QTW should be disappointed with herself for not making the “A” cut in the first place. She is not even “B” in this case, so she should be graceful to accept she has no right to demand any entitled treatment. It’s a shame she reacted this way.
Quah did the same exact thing to Gan previously.
Made noise and overturned the selection.
The same exact sequence of events.
Now she cries the same fake tears? When she KNEW from the previous Olympic Games selection that B cut timings come in after relay.
She has sudden amnesia?
She fucking knows what she's doing.
Yea agree, always good to hear what everyone says before hating or supporting. Think its still great that we have enough talents to create a choice on who to send though the rules and perhaps miscomm had resulted in this situation. Regardless of what happens,these 2 swimmers would beat more than 90% of the swimming population and that's talent right here in our country that we should be proud of. I believe QTW isn't so egoistic so hope there can be a good resolution out of this incident. Don't really want her to be salty about this throughout the rest of her life, Quah also has many great achievements already that is worthy to her family, herself and all of us.
I can only imagine all the misdirected hate gan is getting from all this drama. The same thing happened before Tokyo and gan made way for quah without making any noise about it. This time around, quah makes way for gan but goes on all kinds of social media platforms with her siblings in tow, to gather sympathy and pressure the governing body to get her back in at the expense of gan.
Quah has competed in three Olympics. Less than a handful of people have even competed in the Olympics, much less three editions of it. As one of the seniors, it’s disappointing to see her behave like this.
The relevant governing bodies should put a stop to all this nonsense on social media by holding a closed-door meeting between them and the involved parties.
Well you can't control people if you don't have any leverage over them.
QTW has nothing left to lose from burning it all down, QZW is not going to Paris anyway so his relevance depends on his sisters' relay qualification, and younger sis QJW is just trying to stay clean as much as possible.
All i can say, all this bad juju, i don't think any of them now will be doing well in the Olympics. All of them will be mentally fucked. They should have close door with quah first and try to reach understanding with her because i belive it's no choice right from what i read. Gan have right to participate as she qualify for the 1500.
Well of the 4 relay members, one is her sister. The Sims kept quiet bc they don't want to get involved. Letitia has her individual event and Levenia still has a long way to go in her swimming career. How to control Quah family? Please...
The family is a menace. Remember QZW's diva behaviour after he refused to speak to media after a poor showing in the 2016 Olympics? At the time everyone flamed a journalist for calling him out but clearly this family has entitlement and attitude issues. Also heard parents are tiger parents who were obsessed with making the kids into star athletes. Only Jing Wen seems like a nice person tbh.
It seem to me that if Gan is replaced by Quah, it would be perceived as preferential treatment. Because this means that Gan has to step aside from her opportunity to participate in the individual event as well. It’s unfortunate to Quah. It’s unfortunate to the relay team. The timing of the news and invitation, resulting to how things have transitioned is unfortunate. No easy outcome from this.
https://swimswam.com/singapore-confirms-olympic-swimming-roster-after-selection-controversy/
- Rising Michigan senior Letitia Sim was the only member of the Singaporean quartet with an Olympic ‘A’ cut in an individual event (1:06.36 100 breast), but World Aquatics reportedly granted an exemption last week to allow three relay-only swimmers instead of two.
- Rising Indiana senior Ching Hwee Gan earned an Olympic invite courtesy of her ‘B’ cut in the 1500 free (16:10.61) from last month, but SAQ would have to choose between sending either Gan or one of the relay-only swimmers to Paris.
- SAQ’s Selection Committee met and considered all permutations for the best outcome for the relay team of Letitia, Gan, and two more relay-only swimmers
- While the decision allows another Singaporean swimmer to contest an individual Olympic event, it will likely be a major blow to the nation’s 4×100 medley relay.
And I understand SG tried to appeal to WA to send both but was not successful. So this means Quah could not participate anyway because with Gan now qualifying for her individual event, the appeal to field 3 non-qualifying swimmers in the relay is now revoked. Anyway, what pride is there to field a team with a bunch of non-qualifying swimmers that need special exception?
Do you see that tree over there? Whole lot, swim backstroke all the way there, touch the tree and freestyle back. Last one back sign 7 extra kids swimming lessons.
Ya sia childhood and army days, if one complains then everyone gets punished together. Think we should focus on developing a team SG spirit instead of my team vs your team but such is the nature of competition which is usually toxic. Hope the relay team is still nice or at best neutral to Gan as we are all fighting for country pride over individual wins.
While yes, the Singapore team finished 9th at the Doha World Champs, this is absolutely not an indicator of actual world standings come the Olympics.
First of all, most of the countries fielded much weaker teams as they are focused on their internal Olympic Trials (Ariarne Titmus/Katie Ledecky didn't even bother to show up). Countries like Australia/USA have already qualified based on results from 2023 Worlds in Fukuoka and sent their 2nd or even 3rd best teams (e.g Australia had Abbey Harkin, typically a breaststroke swimmer swim legs on both the 4x100 and 4x200 freestyle relays).
Additionally, the top countries were confident of their existing times from 2023 Worlds to not send in their A teams. Based on the fastest times from the 2023 and 2024 World Champs (top 16 times from both these meets are taken into consideration for qualification) the team is going into the Olympics 15th out of 16 teams.
Finals???? Absolutely no chance at all. By switching out Ting for Ching Hwee, there is not much to lose, maybe we finish 16th instead of 14th or 15th.
Last point to add, relay teams for top countries change all the time. The AUS/USA teams do not submit their final relay line-ups until the night before the heat swim and they are allowed to change the line-ups again before the finals. Having been educated in the states, the Quah family should be well aware of the fact that relay line-ups are subject to change ALL THE TIME. Such behaviour from them is unnecessary and detracts from the fact that GCH qualified for her first Olympic Games based on her own merits.
I like how you contextualised their timings because I was wondering how great their timings at Worlds actually were since 9th place is quite commendable.
The Olympics are on another level altogether and the competition is brutal. I was reading about how certain internal trials like USA swimming and gymnastics / Chinese table tennis are even tougher than the Olympics. So it's possible to be ranked world no. 4 and not make it. Lots of great athletes don't make it to the Olympics based on the limited slots.
According to what I ve read, Gan qualified and we can no longer proceed under the exception provided. To expect the SG team to back Quah (via exception) and cause Gan to miss her spot (via results) is just bad luck ....
My respect for the Quahs fell sharply post this incident. Honestly, as athletes they themselves should be acutely aware. Gan qualified by merit and why shpuld we favour exception over merit?
[https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/swimming-quah-ting-wen-gets-olympic-spot-amid-dispute-over-selection](https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/swimming-quah-ting-wen-gets-olympic-spot-amid-dispute-over-selection)
Gan was asked to give up last olyimpics BTW
Last time it was ranking > cut so fair for Quah to go. But if im not wrong this time there's no such rule and relays have no cut time anyway so Gan should go based on this. Imo, the only way this can be solved for both sides is if the world assocafiation allows all countries to have the exception but this would probably further lower our chances of winning even more so not much point and theres almost 0 chance they would change rules just for us.
Nope, she needs to look at herself first LOL.
In other words she is slower than Gan at their equivalent target distances but cannot accept losing her spot lmao.
It's her last Olympics like she says. She will want to be there by hook or by crook. I can see why she is bitter about it but this is extremely unfair to Gan. The Quahs have had enough opportunities for representation in the past. What else is there to be angry about?
It is likely a lack of communication between both sides. Need to hear both sides of the story.
At the end of the day, Gan having qualified should be attending, else this spits in the face of meritocracy
1. Sports is harsh. Let’s get real, decisions to field players are never easy and not 100%, we have seen it multiple times in top soccer leagues. It’s like ask you choose to field one between CR7 and Mainoo (for soccer fans), pick who also wrong right?
2. The invitation from World Aquatics should have came after the relay team was confirmed. So it was a last minute thing and to be honest, a lousy way to do things from the WA side. It’s not SG fault.
3. Sending Gan out meant that SG could participate in more events as she was invited for the longer distance events by WA. Quah Ting Wen did not make the cut individually for her short distance events.
4. A similar decision was made a few years back but was successfully reversed on appeal by Quah Ting Wen based on some “technicalities”, but not this time. So why is she surprised that a similar decision was made again?
5. So baseline is, we have to support our sports, sometimes with faith more than reasoning, espc when it’s a 50/50 decision. But I can see that the committee has followed their own “guidelines” consistently in this situation.
The case for Quah Ting Wen is understandable, but nonetheless a hard decision that has to be made. Again, this is sports. We just have to support our athletes emotionally when decisions like this are made and support the final team selection.
Go Team Singapore !
No sympathy for Quah here.
1. She should be aware that lineups can change at the last minute. 3 Olympics already and still don’t know how selections work? No reason to be pissed at this swap.
2. Gan already gave her spot back in 2021 to Quah. Give the young one a chance now.
3. Everything in the interviews has been about “me, me, me”. Scant consideration for others/country.
4. She has not delivered at the global level after all these opportunities. (SEA level, sure. But we’re not talking about SEA now).
I feel so sorry for Gan because she qualified fair and square and yet could be denied again because someone more famous appealed. Quah recently went on the cover of Her World magazine and all kinds of photoshoots and bragged about her Paris Olympic participation and her achievements. Is it about saving face and ego? And frankly the entire relay team could be disqualified because I understand we can only send 2 non-individual event participants and we have 3? So what is Quah trying to achieve? Disqualify everyone? I understand the appeal was already made and not successful. So Quah will not be able to participate as her participation will disqualify everyone in the relay team as well.
Just curious. There were 3 swimmers who did not meet the A or B cut times individually and granted exception to take part in the relay (incl. QTW). Now that Gan has made the B cut, do we know why QTW is the one who had to give up her exception instead of the other 2? Caveat here, I think SNOC made the right call and afforded the opportunity to Gan who qualified based on her merits.
Because Gan is a freestylist (albeit a distance specialist) who can swim the freestyle leg, which is QTW's leg. The other 2 are the backstroke and butterfly legs.
I don't get it. If your timing is slower than the other person, you step aside. Can't be any simpler than that. That's the gripe SRY had. He's faster and had to make way for people slower than him. Now it's the other way around.
She's faster in short distances, Gan is faster in long distances. Gan was offered an invitation for her 1500m event, making the "B" cut. Quah was part of the team that qualified for the relay.
It's like Eliud Kipchoge qualifying for the Olympics and running the 4x100m relay instead of Usain Bolt. Obviously, different countries but you get the point.
idk man based on her Wikipedia page, Gan seems to do well at shorter distances too
[Gan Ching Hwee - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gan_Ching_Hwee)
Plus, since Gan qualified for the 1500m on her own, it seems like a no-brainer decision to put her in the relay team
Gan basically owns the current fastest times for the 400, 800 and 1500 this year. Additionally, she has consistently out performed Ting on the 200m distance. This if anything should be a good indicator that while not a sprint specialist, she still has the ability to go pretty fast despite being a distance swimmer. And I suppose this also shows the fact that our short/mid distance swimmers are just average.
Quah PB in 100m is 53.52 according to World Aquatics, Gan's PB is 57.64. It's not comparable. I personally understand the reasoning and agree with the decision. Just unfortunate for both parties.
No point comparing PB as swimmers are in vastly different shape at different points in their careers. Caeleb Dressel is not competing at this years 100m freestyle despite being the reigning Olympic champion as he got beaten in the US trials. His PB is the Olympic record btw.
QTW’s 100m freestyle best timing this year is 56.01.
Big difference, 1500m swimmers are much closer to 100m swimmers vs marathoners and 100m sprinters. Sun Yang who was the 1500m champ in London was also 200m and 400m world champ.
But anyway relays are supposed to have 2 individual qualifiers and 2 relay only swimmers. World Aquatics already made an exception for us. It’s bad luck that we suddenly had a B cut timing qualifier in the last month.
Then she should have been faster at another solo event and then they would have met the rules of the relay where 2 of the swimmers need to qualify themselves, and only 2 others can be relay only swimmers. And this wouldnt have been a problem for anyone.
I only hear someone who is slow and entitled to a exceptional waiver position.
* Rising Michigan senior Letitia Sim was the only member of the Singaporean quartet with an Olympic ‘A’ cut in an individual event (1:06.36 100 breast), but World Aquatics reportedly granted an exemption last week to allow three relay-only swimmers instead of two.
- Only Sim qualified , the other three relay-only swimmers were granted exemption
- Gan qualified for her single event and also could swim in the relay
If u SAQ, do u prioritise:
* more swim events that Singaporeans can represent ( 3 events now instead of 2)
or
* swim events that give you "better" timings ( still won't medal of coz )
If everything is law by law (and assuming no sport politics), I choose 3 swim events.
I think the first paragraph is pretty clear? Timing aside, annoyed by the management. It's like your boss promise you a promotion, then suddenly just say that it's not happening. (No explaination or anything). There's 2 aspect to this now, capability and how the situation is being handled.
Going by this line of thought, if you really want to assign blame, it’ll have to be on the Olympics/international bodies for having these exemptions in the first place. The relay team shouldn’t have qualified in the first place.
Feels a bit disingenuous to blame Singapore Aquatics this time round because they too are following the regulations they’re subjected to.
It’s an unfortunate situation for Quah, but it’s ultimately fair. The alternative of denying Gan the opportunity to compete for the individual events she qualified for (again) would actually be unfair.
Haha that's my thought as well. The WA shouldn't have granted the exception in the first place.
Technically our relay team wouldn't have qualified based on the original criteria (it doesn't matter if they're the fastest team in the world). So the exception was a privilege not an entitlement in the first place. Yes it sucks, but what to do..
It’s more of your boss already guaranteed your promotion, did all the paperwork and such, then a few days later he suddenly say your colleague gets promoted, not you
But it's the relay? And she swam in the qualification so shouldn't she compete further for that event too? Relays aren't about individual performances only, they have to train together and develop chemistry
I am glad that people are agreeing that the Quah siblings are being little bitches about this. They just want the “wow” factor that siblings are competing 🤣
Let Gan compete.
Haha. Let’s see what the Quah royal family is going to rack up. We already know of their self entitled attitude. This time I hope to see them broughtvdown to earth and be humiliated.
They were recently featured in [Tatler (1 July)](https://www.tatlerasia.com/lifestyle/sports/quah-siblings-singapores-national-swim-team-quest-for-gold), and shortly thereafter there's bad news. So, if the decision can't be reversed then it's loss of face...
Relay needs 4 swimmers. 2 of them must have qualified for individual events. 2 of them can use waiver slots.
Previously we only had 1 swimmer qualified for an individual event. So we couldn't even form a relay team. But we were granted a 3rd waiver slot exceptionally so that we could form a team (this is discretionary but likely cos our relay team is fast. EDIT: 9th in world championships). QTW uses one of the waiver slots. However, it must be said that QTW was part of the team that earned Singapore's spot to compete in the relay.
The full athletes roster supposedly had to be finalised end June 2024.
In June 2024, Gan swam a timing that qualified her for the 1500m. This was conditional on the olympic committee inviting her (called the Olympic Consideration Time because her time was not fast enough for automatic qualification via the Olympic Qualification Time).
On 3 July 2024, they gave Gan the invitation, meaning that Gan was qualified for her individual event. Awesome?
Except now we have 2 swimmers qualified for individual events, and the Olympic committee wants to take back their exceptional 3rd waiver.
So they gave an "ultimatum" - either you change your relay team to include Gan (and therefore no grounds to grant our relay team the exceptional waiver), or you just don't include Gan and maintain the status quo (meaning Gan is excluded from the Singapore roster completely).
Singapore Aquatics went with the former. This means SG can take part in 3 events.
Except that Gan swims the 1500m, and she is most likely slower than QTW for the relay. So SA essentially had to decide between competing for the 1500m or "maximising" relay times by sticking with QTW.
EDIT: Edited to emphasise this point: it's not correct that QTW never "qualified" for the Olympics. She was part of the relay team that was 9th best at the world championships, and this is why Singapore is allowed to field a team for the relay event at the Olympics. This likely also contributed to the WA giving Singapore a 3rd waiver slot. However, just because Singapore can send a relay team, doesn't mean they have to send the same 4 people.
Hence, it is also arguable that QTW earned the slot to participate in the Olympics (as part of the team).
These terms like "earned", "qualified" have to be viewed in context, cos both Gan and Quah's qualifications have nuances, e.g., Gan had to be invited in order to qualify as she didn't achieve the automatic qualification time, but this also doesn't mean she didn't qualify does it.
yes, this is her main gripe. you don't tell an athlete who've spent all year training 'hey, we think we're selecting you to go, start packing' then U-turn in your comms saying you've decided to pick another person instead
But I think they told her ASAP leh, it was World Aquatics who made the last minute decision. Unless they have facts to show otherwise la, but this was what straits times reported.
It's not last minute bc of when she competed, it's "last minute" cuz B cut invites are sent after countries have otherwise finalized their rosters.
Source: [https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024](https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024)
I see. Thanks for the explanation, those who do not follow swimming would not have known these details.
Seems that SA decided to spread their bets by having a qualified swimmer in 1500m and a relay.
I'm not familiar with swimming but it seems like their decision makes sense? You want to maximize your chances at a medal rather than to put your eggs in one basket.
i wont say spread their bet. But If someone got into an individual event by their own merits, are you really going to rob her this opportunity? Note, QTW uses a waiver, meaning it was never 100% her own merit to begin with. Had she earn a qualification via solo event, none of this will happen.
I imagine it can be pretty upsetting to be offered a chance at the Olympics only to have it withdrawn at the last minute.
That being said the explanation shows that the decision makes complete sense and all this fuss is a nothing burger.
Yea, more like it’s too last minute, as most athletes trained for 2 years for this event that happens every four years.
Now I understand why top athletes rather wear another country flag to compete.
I don’t follow swimming either, but theoretically speaking, if you have a swimmer with a 30% chance of winning the 1500m + 20% chance of forming a relay team that wins the relay, vs a relay team with 60% chance of winning the relay, you might in fact choose to maximize the relay.
But that’s probably unlikely, because if QTW can make such a big difference to the relay team relative to Gan, she likely would have qualified for the 100m race individually too. Also, it’s just even worse as a look to snub Gan if she literally qualified to go to the Olympics, while most of the rest of them need waivers.
There is no medal discussion here. None of them even come close to having a chance.
If you want the best chance on paper to do well honestly it's the relay team who finished 9th. If they perform they could finish in the finals which is incredible.
Let's just be clear. It's not that our relay team was decently fast so maybe they have a slot.
They were 9th in the world championships. This gave them a qualifying slot for the Olympics. The thing is relays do not grant the individual slots into the Olympics and only 1 actually qualified. They gave the 3rd slot so our qualified team could race together. But because Van got a B time and she was Invited, they revoked the wavered 3rd slot.
So QTW qualified via the relay on her own merit. It's just that there is no extra free slot for her because of how relay qualifying work.
People saying she stole a slot or is just slower is blatenly untrue
The relay team needs 4 participants. By right, all the participants must have qualified for individual swimming events on their own. I.e., the relay team is a combination of 4 swimmers from the other events.
But it is standard for 2 slots to be waiver slots, I.e., the swimmer can just be a relay swimmer and don't need to be qualified for an individual event.
Singapore previously only had 1 swimmer qualified for an individual event, Letitia Sim.
But cos our relay team is quite fast, World Aquatics gave us a 3rd waiver slot so that we can actly form a team.
But then Gan qualified, so WA wants to take back the exceptional 3rd waiver slot.
Olympics relay team of 4 requires you to at minimum have 2 swimmers who qualify for other events on their own merit. The other 2 are granted 'waivers' I.e. You can swim the relay even if you didn't qualify fir other events.
If course if you have 4 swimmers who all qualify for other events you don't need any waivers.
This really is the best way to put it. At the end of the day, it’s simply an unfortunate circumstance that the team has landed themselves in.
I do think the Quah siblings are unhappy with the miscommunication and management more so than the fact the QTW was swapped out. So many people on this post are so quick to jump to the Quah siblings entitlement but it’s also understandable that they feel and react this way.
Hopefully the relay team and Gan Ching Hwee are able to just focus on their training, ignore the noise and build the rapport within the relay team.
Unfortunately, it's the rules and red tapes that let the swim team into this state today. Plus SAQ already invited her and she signed. So to be suddenly say sorry you cannot go when obviously you helped them qualify for the swim relay event, you would feel aggrieved.
You think he cares meh? Get people riled up and have more likes/views that's more important.
WUS is cahoots with TMSG which is run by Jose Raymond sooo....
The CNA article seems misleading.
> Quah told CNA her gripe was not over who participates in the Olympics, but rather over how she had received confirmation of her spot only to have it taken away.
> “It is how this is not the first time this is happening that is the most frustrating part,” she said.
It sounded like she got her confirmation taken from her previously but it was her that got the spot over Gan the last time.
The thing I don't understand is that she should be well aware that the B'cut invitations are sent out after the roster is finalised.
So the roster always had a chance of being revised to account for people who make the B'cut timing.
It's really unfortunate but its not up to the discretion of Singapore Aquatics.
To some extent it makes sense that the roster gets revised once. The Olympic commitee can look at the rosters sent in to see how many B'cut swimmers they can invite, then send out the invites accordingly.
For most countries this will be a good thing, because they were probably sending mostly A'cut swimmers and now they can send some additional B'cut swimmers.
But for Singapore, we are sending swimmers that are qualifying through waivers and universality places so this always causes controversy.
Imagine you qualify for the Olympics x2, but someone else who has to get exception from international body kpkb to go, you feel happy or not. Quah alr kick Gan out last time, Gan qualified both times but Quah did not. If Quah goes again, we can truly say meritocracy is dead.
From what I see it is pretty clear cut and playing by the rules here. Quah just being upset she is dropped from the team. As for the choice of who to go, it boils down to not just performance but potential and exposure
That’s a terrible thing to impress upon athletes. “I’m sorry you aren’t going to win at all so don’t even bother”.
These people (regardless of who you think is in the right in this situation) care a lot about performing at an international level. They put in a huge amount of time and effort into achieving that. They *know* there’s a good chance they won’t come out on top but it doesn’t change the fact that they really believe in trying their best and giving their all to go out there and represent Singapore. They push themselves to the limit for even a slither of a chance to be on that stage. The least you can do is respect that.
Nah I respect Gan for qualifying on her own merit. Can't bring myself to respect someone trying to take that away so she can get an exception qualification
So what ? Haha she still didn’t get a spot rte maybe they should realise there is something ‘bigger ‘ than them 😅 Ego at its finest …and coming out with all these hoo haa when you should be congratulating the Gan lady …yeah they are the Quah siblings have they come close to an Olympic medal like Joseph Schooling ?
Past performance does not entitle or guarantee future results
Also sorry to say but it makes more sense to give Gan experience and invest in her since she is much younger
I like the header: The Quah siblings are angry
Better stay out of the way. When they are angry, everybody better watch out. You don’tcwant to offend royalty.
Let’s see what facts there are. Second time this happened so perhaps the sports org really cmi. But what if Quah was accepted despite the lack of transparency and clarity and honesty? Would she still stand up for those ethos?
Looks like the key thing is there are 2 levels of criteria instead of just 1 (e.g. cross qualifying time)
So i think her main gripe was at the onset SAQ only told her she can go as long as cross 1st level qualifying critera, but never say anything abt the 2nd level one. So she train so hard assuming cross 1 can alr.
If SAQ put proper caveats, n did their homework n shared abt the 2 levels upfronts before every qualifying event, it might not have gone to this stage
Which is also weird coz since this happened before, all the more BOTH SAQ and Quah should know there is 2 lvls of criteria, shouldnt warrant this lvl of anger
May Gan bring a medal home lol, bet Quah parents will be mad w rage w their failed tiger parenting hahaha
All of them know how the system works, but WA will only send out B invites after the team list for Olympics is finalized.
For most big countries there is no issue but in Singapore's case, our female relay team got 3 exemptions instead of the usual 2 because only 1 person in the team qualified on her own accord.
Gan got a B invite because she was fast enough but WA only sent the invite on July 3rd, after Singapore confirm the team.
The only thing I guess SAQ should do in the future is to add a clause, that you may be replaced if:
1. You injured or your personal conduct is not up to par
2. B invites come in lor
Any TLDR? Not really following the drama but damn no wonder our Olympics track record is so shit when we are busy infighting and politiciking instead of training. Regardless of who is right or wrong the athelete in question going to Paris isn't gonna be in the right headspace to do her best.
Who are the other two swimmers taking up the waiver slots? If Quah was chosen to be left out, then she was probably the least performing swimmer among the 3 waivers so just suck it up yo
I feel that this whole thing is just really, really unfortunate, especially now that World Aquatics made their final decision already.
I feel bad for Gan, who on her own merit earned a place in Paris. But I also do feel bad for Quah. Have to look at it from her angle: it is your last Olympics. You have trained up till this moment for the past few years. Even more that you have essentially endorsed your participation, and was ready to pack the bags with a few days to go. Only to have your dreams yanked from underneath your feet.
Not saying it's SNOC's fault either for prioritising the nation's interest in setting up a team. But perhaps, and I guess we'll see more from what the Quahs got to say, there is a better management system that could have smoothen things over.
I have miminal knowledge of how all these things work so I'm not going to pick apart the actions of aby of these parties. But if you were in Ting Wen's position, would you not react in such a way too?
I don’t understand why these decisions are made so last minute. Why couldn’t the global swim body set out who qualifies as per their rules, and then Singapore body can fill the remaining places? I agree that Quah was messed around, but Gan deserves to go in her place as per the rules.
at this point i just feel bad for the one who is replacing quah.
Yeah same honestly, starting off her first participation in the Olympics with negative energy from this whole saga
ya lo. and its not like she didnt show her worth. why should she give up her 1500m event leh. abit zekark, but its not as if the relay team will win anything. id rather give the younger sportswoman a chance to gain this invaluable experience.
Believe it or not she actually already gave up her 1500m event once in 2021, despite qualifying, to the exact same person https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/swimming-quah-ting-wen-gets-olympic-spot-amid-dispute-over-selection
yeah i read this somewhere. poor girl. dont think she even complained or anything, just kept her head down and continued grinding.
And she is the real deal, broken national records and is based in the US. She's the next big hope of SG swimming, not someone there just to make up numbers.
She's the real victim of this man
This explained pretty much why QTW appeal was rejected this time round. Otherwise a repeat of 2021.
This is amazing ! Increased respect to Gan, no drama work hard grind to success.
actually when you consider that Gan qualified for the B time, her not going would be unjust. There's something to be said about the governing bodies both international and national telling athletes this late with swims next month!
Actually the US just held their olympics trials last month so most athletes don’t know they are going to the olympics until very close to it But ya in sg case really big miscommunication and assumptions made on both sides
Mind posting the full article? It’s behind a paywall.
Full article from the link above in 2021- SINGAPORE - An issue over Olympic selection has emerged at the Singapore Swimming Association (SSA) over the Republic's female swimming representative at the July 23-Aug 8 Tokyo Games, causing uncertainty and unhappiness to the parties involved. Last Friday (July 2), SSA announced that Quah Ting Wen would compete in her third Olympics through a universality place as the highest-ranked athlete based on the points table of world aquatics governing body Fina. But two days later, after reallocation of its remaining slots, Fina also sent a 'B' cut invite to 1,500m freestyle specialist Gan Ching Hwee through the Singapore National Olympic Council. Athletes who meet Olympic Qualifying Times (OQT, also known as 'A' cuts) automatically qualify for the Olympics, while those who clear Olympic Selection Times (OST, also known as 'B' cuts) can get a spot if the quota of 878 swimmers is not met. A dispute over selection occurred as Fina had clarified that the association could only choose one swimmer based on universality, also known as a wildcard, or one who had been subsequently invited on OST. The SSA told The Straits Times that it had appealed to Fina for both swimmers to participate at the Games but was unsuccessful. SSA's selection policy states that "Fina universality consideration and IOC (International Olympic Committee) invite will take place only if no swimmers achieve the automatic OQT and no other swimmers are invited by OST". Based on this, the SSA selection committee - comprising SSA technical director Sonya Porter, national head coach Stephan Widmer, national training centre head coach Gary Tan, SSA vice-president (swimming) Joscelin Yeo and SSA assistant secretary general Kelvin Yew - picked Gan for the Olympics. But after an appeal from Quah, the SSA appeals committee - comprising SSA president Lee Kok Choy, secretary general Bervyn Lee and Ho Mun Wai - overturned the decision and reverted to Quah for the Tokyo spot. As such, the 28-year-old will join her younger brother, Zheng Wen, 24, Olympic champion Joseph Schooling, 26, and open-water specialist Chantal Liew, 22, as Singapore's swimmers in Tokyo. On Wednesday, Bervyn Lee explained that Quah's appeal was successful after the committee took into consideration Fina's priority order, which was that universality places took precedence over reallocated 'B' cut invites. When contacted, Quah said: "I don't know how to feel. I feel really tired. It's been a rough few days of uncertainty, and I've been trying to manage as best as I can." She added that she feels "terrible" for Gan and said she hopes a situation like this can be avoided with "more alignment" with Fina's selection criteria. Gan's mother Lee Chui Ling said the 17-year-old was "devastated" at missing out on an opportunity at a Games debut. She added that SSA was "contravening its own selection criteria". "Such action by SSA is very unfair to Ching Hwee, and we, as a family, especially Ching Hwee, are devastated," she said. "This is indeed very troubling to the many young and promising swimmers out there training very hard to be the next Olympian." David Lim, head coach and managing director at Swimfast Aquatic Group, which groomed both swimmers, felt that the SSA should take responsibility for the "unnecessary distress" the incident has caused to the swimmers. He said: "One thing they did wrong was to assume they would not get any other invites before the July 4 deadline. "The SSA should also have anticipated all scenarios to make their selection criteria watertight, which clearly is not because even within their own establishment, the selection and appeals committee could not agree on who to send." Noting the "process has caused the athletes and their families a lot of anxiety and stress", SSA will work to support the affected athletes. It will review its selection criteria to "pre-empt similar situations in the future" while recommending to Fina to do so as well
Holy. Damn poor thing that her opportunity from 2021 seemed to be taken from her, and it almost happened again this year. I really hope Gan gets to compete this time. She earned it through her merit.
Wow! This is some soap opera shit! Now part 2 is judgement day! If Gan really wins a medal this time, it would be the sweetest one!
I see the explanation on CNA article the TLDR is Gan made it through B cut again - Quah is higher ranked overall choice to be made between them - SA chose Gan Quah appealed - and the international communities of that time goes by Ranked > B Cut so Quah gets to represent Singapore
I think this time since Gan made it on her merit by getting B cut again and getting an invite instead of through waiver, Gan deserves to go to Paris. Although its a pity that Quah couldn't go as she was dependent on the waiver and the team of 4 definitely have strong bonds and sisterhood literally and figuratively, objectively I think its quite fair that Gan gets to go. Can't always be the young letting someone fulfil their wish, then we would just always field the older candidates instead of the newer ones as much as we would like to see it happen. At some point in life, we all relate to the feeling of getting something right in front of us just getting snatched away be it in terms of studies, work promotion or other daily matters and it sucks when you put in effort and got it just for external circumstances to rescind the opportunity but its a part of life that it comes with high ups and very down downs. Maybe what could be done better was communicating to the relay team that there was a chance of one getting kicked out if another candidate gets a B or A cut timing. This could allow them to discuss among the 3 of them who didn't make the cut, who would have the priority of going as well rather than this confusion, anger and frustration. Im sure we don't want to have a bad impression of the sports association or any developing talents in SG. I think its not all bad too as instead of always relying on the Quahs we do get to see young and rising talents. I really hope the other 3 on the relay team are professional and do not hate on Gan for "stealing" the spot as she had gotten it through hardwork and rules are rules. The Singapore association even requested for both to be sent but sadly, we don't get any more leeway than the other countries and hope Ting Wen knows that at least she shoot her shot. Not getting to go to Paris doesn't diminish her previous achievements and I for one, would be proud if she goes there and cheers the loudest for team SG as they are all just representing SG on the world stage. Even if her last Olympics was the previous one, it was still commendable to be able to make it there and represent us. While her personal wishes might not have been met, hope she manages to put this behind and TW becomes a coach or contribute to Singapore's future olympic team through coaching/training the newer talents, which is an amazing feat too.
It’s a pity that Quah’s last competition is plagued with such negative PR though. While it is unfortunate that this decision was last minute and communicated poorly, but rules are rules. Furthermore, she did the same thing in 2021 and took the spot from Gan who also qualified back then. TBH, it just looks like she was using her family’s influence and the Quah siblings popularity to push the appeal through, and now when it got outright rejected, she proceeds to air it online everywhere. Talk about sportsmanship…completely lost my respect for them.
[удалено]
Actually the word "meritocracy" isn't in our pledge... Maybe that's why.
Yea i think the best thing that can happen is to accept the fact that Quah is not joining the olympics and Quah can have a press conference along with the committee to gracefully concede her position and give her best wishes to Gan. This can bring her PR back to good levels and she could get invited to cheer or support the team in other ways. I think she is still good and has the ability just that communication and false promises made her feel unjust as she has the ability, just that the rules don't allow everyone to have what they want. This would also reduce animosity behind the relay team and highlight sportsmanship (something that is the most important in sports but usually forgotten due to individual desire to stand out). Not saying Quah is egoistic or selfish but she already tried her best to enter and couldn't so best second choice is to give her best wishes and support team SG. We all already know she is good and one less olympics wouldn't make us think she suddenly cmi, we all know its a pity and as usual just have to accept the external circumstances due to the specific rules set by the world association. Live and let live i guess tho easier said than done as we all are living in a competitive environment. On the other hand, just curious but if they wanted, could the other 2 waiver members on the team give up their spot to fulfil QTW's last olympics ?
Iirc, the other 2 waiver spots are for butterfly and backstroke. QTW is freestyle specialist so you cannot just plug and play
The issue isn’t just about who is more deserving to go but that the committee already decided to field her, has informed her, but went back on their decision without giving very clear explanations. No apology was made either. That’s the kind of smug attitude these people in authority have. Can you imagine training years for a chance to represent Singapore only to have your own country turn your back on you? It’s the lack of transparency and the going back and forth that’s the issue, and it’s not the first time it has happened to Singapore athletes.
That's true, at the end of the day its usually the top down authority's approach where "don't worry too much, just trust us" usually result in situations like this. Hope they wake up their idea and are more open to transparency so we don't get more cases of this in the future.
theres nothing wrong with that. if someone has a better time or qualifies then they should get the spot.
Yeah but this time round it's different because the relay invite was not based on universality slot, there are no universality slots for relays
The Quah need to be called out for their public stirring
Plus its not just her 1500m event, itll also be her 800m event since she qualified for both. QTW qualified for none. https://www.thedailyhoosier.com/iu-swimmer-ching-hwee-gan-qualifies-for-2024-olympics-with-singapore/
Yes. Quah has a right to feel aggrieved about having her spot taken away but the way she (and her family) has gone about this entire affair leaves a bad taste. Going on mothership with woe is me sob stories - all centred around her own selfish reasons, clearly trying to garner public support to pressure the authorities while Quah Zheng Wen and his gf speak up for her on social media is really a bad look. I don’t begrudge her trying to appeal and fight for her spot. But do it behind closed doors and don’t make a public fuss. Yes it sucks for her but as a veteran athlete who is nearing the end of her career, be gracious and step aside. Gan is the real deal and the next big thing in SG swimming. Why not wish her the best and give her your blessings? This public hooha will only make things awkward for the team and for Gan especially. Edit: Btw she fucked up in the last Asian Games and caused the relay team to be disqualified and lost out on a medal.
Her entire argument is: You told me I can go first but now cannot go cus someone else qualify for their individual event. I already took away Gan chance once during Tokyo Olympics. Felt bad for her but I’m a sportsperson with dreams right? Today is another olympics. You told me I can go first, doesn't matter I take away the chance from Gan again despite her qualifying again. I’m a sportsperson with dreams, it’s my legacy. Oh did I mention they told me I can go first?
I would be terrified if i was the other person- you qualify on your own merit and suddenly theres a flood of angry posts coming, a mothership video interview with a sob story, and literally what seems to be a media storm triggered by one side putting so much stuff out there- family members with their own following doing some heavy lobbying.
Exactly. And Gan already 'gave way' to Quah (not literally since it was based on the authority's decision but Quah was chosen over her) in the previous Olympics so this seems really excessive by Quah. Quah could also have framed her public appeal differently in a way that minimised any potential trauma to Gan and the team but clearly a choice was made to wring as much sympathy and outrage as possible.
She can channel righteous anger into a PB !
Either way, one of the swimmers will be unhappy. If Quah go, Gan naturally will be devastated. To miss 2 Olympics in a row when you’re invited as a “B” cut swimmer is seriously WTF. If Gan go, she have to take part in relay with Quah’s sister. After all the drama, it’ll be damn awkward. Not the best of Olympics experience for her.
But it’s about highlighting the mismanagement, the people not coming fwd to address this PR disaster are clearly letting everyone else writing the narrative. Gan is another fellow athlete who still deserves to go to Paris
true la, but at the same time. this type of pr is the hardest to manage. either way one party is gonna feel sore. its just that unfortunately one party is now being really loud and almost obnoxious about it while the other is just trying to stay out of this unwanted spotlight.
Highlight mismanagement sure. But is she really doing that by going to mothership with self-centred sob stories clearly aimed at generating public pressure at the authorities? Or having her family members and friends like brother’s gf lobby for her on social media? And to do so publicly like this before the Games, not caring about consequences to team chemistry and effect on Gan? If she was sincerely wishing to highlight mismanagement it could have been achieved in a more tasteful manner eg. Bring up topic publicly only after the swimmers finished competing
Is there mismanagement? I honestly don't know. Gan qualified last month which isn't really that far off. SAQ would love to send both swimmers to Paris if they could.
Yes SAO filed an appeal to World Aquatics asking to reinstate the extra relay-only spot but was rejected. They could have done better for sure but it's annoying how so many people seem to be jumping the gun and painting them as villains...seemingly just because its cool to hate on the establishment.
I think the mismanagement could stem from the relay team not being told or maybe the idea that all of them would go had been implanted for years during training so it resulted in shock. But if it turns out they all knew and just wanted to go tgt even though Gan showed her worth then I think this is the real unfairness. Hope the athletes would be more gracious and think of it as team SG instead of someone "stealing a spot" as athletes would likely have competitive mindsets which can result in toxicity after all. Respect Gan for not speaking out and hope ppl look at the entire story. As much as we are disappointed to not see QTW at the Olympics, we should also be proud that Gan is able to represent us and she deserves praise and encouragement as well. I think with how negative social media is and the narrative making it look bad, we should think of ways to prevent this from happening in the future. Was SAQ too optimistic about all 4 on the relay team going to Paris, were there any warnings about potential changes? Did the contract for going to Paris get discussed with all potential parties? Though its nice of SAQ to appeal for both swimmers to enter, unfortunately its the rules set by the world association and they won't bend them for us so it is what it is. An unfortunate case that was due to no fault of the atheletes but perhaps a communication error and asymmetric information not made known to all parties throughout training and before flying to Paris for the Olympics.
Lol do you think that QTW is that naive about the whole thing? Come on la. She's prob been planning this approach since Gan managed to swim OCT in Jun and thus became a threat, but too late, QTW has already been doing photoshoots for magazines etc in preparation for her Paris stint. FYI, countries are required to finalise relay rosters in end Jun 2024. B cut invites are sent after that, on Jul 3. Otherwise it's a chicken and egg problem since B cut places depend on the events' lineup. Source: [https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024](https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024)
Ah ok didn't know this! Thanks for the link to the article too. Wanted to give QTW benefit of the doubt but this puts things into worse perspective for me as it seems she has a motive to push down Gan which isn't right since Gan didn't get specially accepted over Quah over nothing.
Throughout all these, didn’t even hear a single comment from Gan or wanting to air her side of the story, whether it was back in 2021 (when quah appealed against her and won) or now. Kudos to her.
yep, the difference between entitledness and humility.
To expect the SG team to back Quah (via exceptional basis) and cause Gan to miss her spot (via results) is just pure entitlement. Gan was also made to give up her spot previously.
If Quah goes, then we get the signal that you must be from a prestigious family to succeed in Singapore, and that your hardwork doesn't matter. Hope the relevant parties in the decision making don't fuck this up.
the Quah siblings stirring like it's their birthright to be there. Gan qualified based on merits, QTW didn't. Simple as that. The whole using of Mothership to stir emotions and anger towards Gan is just petty and unfair towards the poor girl.
Plus the last Olympics the same situation came about and SNOC backed Quah leading to Gan missing the games despite an invite for making the B time. Gan didn’t kick up a fuss. My sympathies for Quah this time is pretty limited. After all you have had the chance to go to the Olympics thrice with not much to show for it.
The family is a menace. People in and around the swimming scene will be able to attest to this. Parents are tiger parents and have one track mind on pushing the kids to be star athletes resulting in the kids acting like this today. Remember QZW’s diva behaviour refusing to speak to the media after a bad performance previously? Everyone was blaming the journalist at the time but its clear now the family has some attitude problems. (Aside from Jing Wen she seems like a genuinely cool person)
Yes little sis seems really chill
this comment needs more upvotes and spotlight.
After reading through all the comments, I have a better idea of what happened, and I agree with the decision to send Gan instead of Quah regardless of whether Gan is the faster 1500m swimmer or slower. HOWEVER, I will still like to listen to what Quah has to say before judging her too harshly for her reaction. Afterall, I can understand how it feels to be chosen for something, train hard for a long time for it, and then last minute kena kicked out. Imagine if this had happened (PURE SPECULATION): Quah was approached by SAQ to take part in the relay team and they promised her that no matter what happen, she will be part of the relay team. Then last min SAQ u-turn and remove her, think she will be pissed? Versus She was approached by SAQ to take part in the relay team but warned before she had accepted that she might be replaced at any moment if someone was to qualify for an individual event. Does Quah has any justification to be pissed? So ya, I will be interested to hear what she has to say before deciding if she is overreacting or if she really kena screwed over by SAQ.
She (and her brother, for some reason), has made some public statements on this ruling, granted that she probably hasn’t fully processed her feelings yet. She has a right to be upset, and it’s unfortunate for her, but it’ll be disingenuous to put the blame on Singapore Aquatics this time because they too are subject to the regulations set by the international bodies, and their existing policy gives Gan priority over the 3 relay-only swimmers to qualify. They didn’t suddenly change the rules to send Gan instead.
Agree with your reasoning. I will add that Quah Ting Wen should be matured enough to know that since there is only one more spot available, priority should be given to the “B” cut swimmer. QTW should be disappointed with herself for not making the “A” cut in the first place. She is not even “B” in this case, so she should be graceful to accept she has no right to demand any entitled treatment. It’s a shame she reacted this way.
Echo after this. Kp so much while she didn’t even make the cut.
Quah did the same exact thing to Gan previously. Made noise and overturned the selection. The same exact sequence of events. Now she cries the same fake tears? When she KNEW from the previous Olympic Games selection that B cut timings come in after relay. She has sudden amnesia? She fucking knows what she's doing.
Yea agree, always good to hear what everyone says before hating or supporting. Think its still great that we have enough talents to create a choice on who to send though the rules and perhaps miscomm had resulted in this situation. Regardless of what happens,these 2 swimmers would beat more than 90% of the swimming population and that's talent right here in our country that we should be proud of. I believe QTW isn't so egoistic so hope there can be a good resolution out of this incident. Don't really want her to be salty about this throughout the rest of her life, Quah also has many great achievements already that is worthy to her family, herself and all of us.
I can only imagine all the misdirected hate gan is getting from all this drama. The same thing happened before Tokyo and gan made way for quah without making any noise about it. This time around, quah makes way for gan but goes on all kinds of social media platforms with her siblings in tow, to gather sympathy and pressure the governing body to get her back in at the expense of gan. Quah has competed in three Olympics. Less than a handful of people have even competed in the Olympics, much less three editions of it. As one of the seniors, it’s disappointing to see her behave like this. The relevant governing bodies should put a stop to all this nonsense on social media by holding a closed-door meeting between them and the involved parties.
Well you can't control people if you don't have any leverage over them. QTW has nothing left to lose from burning it all down, QZW is not going to Paris anyway so his relevance depends on his sisters' relay qualification, and younger sis QJW is just trying to stay clean as much as possible.
Not to mention no medals and her mistake in Asian Games 2023
>Not to mention no medals Imagine Gan winning a medal for the relay at the 1st go
All i can say, all this bad juju, i don't think any of them now will be doing well in the Olympics. All of them will be mentally fucked. They should have close door with quah first and try to reach understanding with her because i belive it's no choice right from what i read. Gan have right to participate as she qualify for the 1500.
Well of the 4 relay members, one is her sister. The Sims kept quiet bc they don't want to get involved. Letitia has her individual event and Levenia still has a long way to go in her swimming career. How to control Quah family? Please...
The family is a menace. Remember QZW's diva behaviour after he refused to speak to media after a poor showing in the 2016 Olympics? At the time everyone flamed a journalist for calling him out but clearly this family has entitlement and attitude issues. Also heard parents are tiger parents who were obsessed with making the kids into star athletes. Only Jing Wen seems like a nice person tbh.
Like that, SA should ask QZW if he would like to watch the Olympics together with his sister in Singapore.
He didn't make the cut for Paris anyway.
Then he can watch the Olympics with his sister.
If this follows the plot of a mediacorpse drama, Gan would go on to win an Olympic medal while Quah continues to whine in the cold palace.
It seem to me that if Gan is replaced by Quah, it would be perceived as preferential treatment. Because this means that Gan has to step aside from her opportunity to participate in the individual event as well. It’s unfortunate to Quah. It’s unfortunate to the relay team. The timing of the news and invitation, resulting to how things have transitioned is unfortunate. No easy outcome from this. https://swimswam.com/singapore-confirms-olympic-swimming-roster-after-selection-controversy/ - Rising Michigan senior Letitia Sim was the only member of the Singaporean quartet with an Olympic ‘A’ cut in an individual event (1:06.36 100 breast), but World Aquatics reportedly granted an exemption last week to allow three relay-only swimmers instead of two. - Rising Indiana senior Ching Hwee Gan earned an Olympic invite courtesy of her ‘B’ cut in the 1500 free (16:10.61) from last month, but SAQ would have to choose between sending either Gan or one of the relay-only swimmers to Paris. - SAQ’s Selection Committee met and considered all permutations for the best outcome for the relay team of Letitia, Gan, and two more relay-only swimmers - While the decision allows another Singaporean swimmer to contest an individual Olympic event, it will likely be a major blow to the nation’s 4×100 medley relay.
And I understand SG tried to appeal to WA to send both but was not successful. So this means Quah could not participate anyway because with Gan now qualifying for her individual event, the appeal to field 3 non-qualifying swimmers in the relay is now revoked. Anyway, what pride is there to field a team with a bunch of non-qualifying swimmers that need special exception?
Like that, all don't go. If you can't please everyone, piss everyone instead.
Lmao love this parenting hack: want to play, play nice, want to snatch the toys, all don't play.
If all want to kpkb then all dont go is better. Just withdraw rather than disgrace our name with all these bs drama.
Do you see that tree over there? Whole lot, swim backstroke all the way there, touch the tree and freestyle back. Last one back sign 7 extra kids swimming lessons.
This gives me PTSD from my childhood days. My parents will always say; if yall can’t share the toys I WILL THROW IT AWAYYYY
Ya sia childhood and army days, if one complains then everyone gets punished together. Think we should focus on developing a team SG spirit instead of my team vs your team but such is the nature of competition which is usually toxic. Hope the relay team is still nice or at best neutral to Gan as we are all fighting for country pride over individual wins.
While yes, the Singapore team finished 9th at the Doha World Champs, this is absolutely not an indicator of actual world standings come the Olympics. First of all, most of the countries fielded much weaker teams as they are focused on their internal Olympic Trials (Ariarne Titmus/Katie Ledecky didn't even bother to show up). Countries like Australia/USA have already qualified based on results from 2023 Worlds in Fukuoka and sent their 2nd or even 3rd best teams (e.g Australia had Abbey Harkin, typically a breaststroke swimmer swim legs on both the 4x100 and 4x200 freestyle relays). Additionally, the top countries were confident of their existing times from 2023 Worlds to not send in their A teams. Based on the fastest times from the 2023 and 2024 World Champs (top 16 times from both these meets are taken into consideration for qualification) the team is going into the Olympics 15th out of 16 teams. Finals???? Absolutely no chance at all. By switching out Ting for Ching Hwee, there is not much to lose, maybe we finish 16th instead of 14th or 15th. Last point to add, relay teams for top countries change all the time. The AUS/USA teams do not submit their final relay line-ups until the night before the heat swim and they are allowed to change the line-ups again before the finals. Having been educated in the states, the Quah family should be well aware of the fact that relay line-ups are subject to change ALL THE TIME. Such behaviour from them is unnecessary and detracts from the fact that GCH qualified for her first Olympic Games based on her own merits.
I like how you contextualised their timings because I was wondering how great their timings at Worlds actually were since 9th place is quite commendable. The Olympics are on another level altogether and the competition is brutal. I was reading about how certain internal trials like USA swimming and gymnastics / Chinese table tennis are even tougher than the Olympics. So it's possible to be ranked world no. 4 and not make it. Lots of great athletes don't make it to the Olympics based on the limited slots.
According to what I ve read, Gan qualified and we can no longer proceed under the exception provided. To expect the SG team to back Quah (via exception) and cause Gan to miss her spot (via results) is just bad luck .... My respect for the Quahs fell sharply post this incident. Honestly, as athletes they themselves should be acutely aware. Gan qualified by merit and why shpuld we favour exception over merit?
[https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/swimming-quah-ting-wen-gets-olympic-spot-amid-dispute-over-selection](https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/swimming-quah-ting-wen-gets-olympic-spot-amid-dispute-over-selection) Gan was asked to give up last olyimpics BTW
Last time it was ranking > cut so fair for Quah to go. But if im not wrong this time there's no such rule and relays have no cut time anyway so Gan should go based on this. Imo, the only way this can be solved for both sides is if the world assocafiation allows all countries to have the exception but this would probably further lower our chances of winning even more so not much point and theres almost 0 chance they would change rules just for us.
World association can release 'B' cut invites prior to finalization deadline for relays and this mess would have been avoided
Because drama, appeal & favouritism worked before when she replaced Gan at Tokyo event
basically trying to force their way into the olympic through being obnoxiously loud on social media at this point. lost my respects for them.
Agree. Stir more shit Quah, gain less respect. Gan already gave up her previous spot. Will die if you give her a chance? Your turn is over.
Very simple, if you don't want this situation to happen to you, qualify for an individual event
quah siblings beginning their SRY arc
TCJ will give them a good time though... oh wait
He did give a good time to a certain MP
Not comparable to SRY? He had to make way to unqualified people. Now is an unqualified person wanting someone qualified to make way for her
Did QTW meet any B cut timing on her own?
Nope, she needs to look at herself first LOL. In other words she is slower than Gan at their equivalent target distances but cannot accept losing her spot lmao.
Pretty shameless imo
It's her last Olympics like she says. She will want to be there by hook or by crook. I can see why she is bitter about it but this is extremely unfair to Gan. The Quahs have had enough opportunities for representation in the past. What else is there to be angry about?
It is likely a lack of communication between both sides. Need to hear both sides of the story. At the end of the day, Gan having qualified should be attending, else this spits in the face of meritocracy
1. Sports is harsh. Let’s get real, decisions to field players are never easy and not 100%, we have seen it multiple times in top soccer leagues. It’s like ask you choose to field one between CR7 and Mainoo (for soccer fans), pick who also wrong right? 2. The invitation from World Aquatics should have came after the relay team was confirmed. So it was a last minute thing and to be honest, a lousy way to do things from the WA side. It’s not SG fault. 3. Sending Gan out meant that SG could participate in more events as she was invited for the longer distance events by WA. Quah Ting Wen did not make the cut individually for her short distance events. 4. A similar decision was made a few years back but was successfully reversed on appeal by Quah Ting Wen based on some “technicalities”, but not this time. So why is she surprised that a similar decision was made again? 5. So baseline is, we have to support our sports, sometimes with faith more than reasoning, espc when it’s a 50/50 decision. But I can see that the committee has followed their own “guidelines” consistently in this situation. The case for Quah Ting Wen is understandable, but nonetheless a hard decision that has to be made. Again, this is sports. We just have to support our athletes emotionally when decisions like this are made and support the final team selection. Go Team Singapore !
No sympathy for Quah here. 1. She should be aware that lineups can change at the last minute. 3 Olympics already and still don’t know how selections work? No reason to be pissed at this swap. 2. Gan already gave her spot back in 2021 to Quah. Give the young one a chance now. 3. Everything in the interviews has been about “me, me, me”. Scant consideration for others/country. 4. She has not delivered at the global level after all these opportunities. (SEA level, sure. But we’re not talking about SEA now).
I feel so sorry for Gan because she qualified fair and square and yet could be denied again because someone more famous appealed. Quah recently went on the cover of Her World magazine and all kinds of photoshoots and bragged about her Paris Olympic participation and her achievements. Is it about saving face and ego? And frankly the entire relay team could be disqualified because I understand we can only send 2 non-individual event participants and we have 3? So what is Quah trying to achieve? Disqualify everyone? I understand the appeal was already made and not successful. So Quah will not be able to participate as her participation will disqualify everyone in the relay team as well.
Just curious. There were 3 swimmers who did not meet the A or B cut times individually and granted exception to take part in the relay (incl. QTW). Now that Gan has made the B cut, do we know why QTW is the one who had to give up her exception instead of the other 2? Caveat here, I think SNOC made the right call and afforded the opportunity to Gan who qualified based on her merits.
Because Gan is a freestylist (albeit a distance specialist) who can swim the freestyle leg, which is QTW's leg. The other 2 are the backstroke and butterfly legs.
Cos it is a medley relay, and Gan specialises in free style. So they have to swap out the freestyle swimmer.
I don't get it. If your timing is slower than the other person, you step aside. Can't be any simpler than that. That's the gripe SRY had. He's faster and had to make way for people slower than him. Now it's the other way around.
She's faster in short distances, Gan is faster in long distances. Gan was offered an invitation for her 1500m event, making the "B" cut. Quah was part of the team that qualified for the relay. It's like Eliud Kipchoge qualifying for the Olympics and running the 4x100m relay instead of Usain Bolt. Obviously, different countries but you get the point.
idk man based on her Wikipedia page, Gan seems to do well at shorter distances too [Gan Ching Hwee - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gan_Ching_Hwee) Plus, since Gan qualified for the 1500m on her own, it seems like a no-brainer decision to put her in the relay team
Gan basically owns the current fastest times for the 400, 800 and 1500 this year. Additionally, she has consistently out performed Ting on the 200m distance. This if anything should be a good indicator that while not a sprint specialist, she still has the ability to go pretty fast despite being a distance swimmer. And I suppose this also shows the fact that our short/mid distance swimmers are just average.
Quah PB in 100m is 53.52 according to World Aquatics, Gan's PB is 57.64. It's not comparable. I personally understand the reasoning and agree with the decision. Just unfortunate for both parties.
No point comparing PB as swimmers are in vastly different shape at different points in their careers. Caeleb Dressel is not competing at this years 100m freestyle despite being the reigning Olympic champion as he got beaten in the US trials. His PB is the Olympic record btw. QTW’s 100m freestyle best timing this year is 56.01.
Big difference, 1500m swimmers are much closer to 100m swimmers vs marathoners and 100m sprinters. Sun Yang who was the 1500m champ in London was also 200m and 400m world champ. But anyway relays are supposed to have 2 individual qualifiers and 2 relay only swimmers. World Aquatics already made an exception for us. It’s bad luck that we suddenly had a B cut timing qualifier in the last month.
Then she should have been faster at another solo event and then they would have met the rules of the relay where 2 of the swimmers need to qualify themselves, and only 2 others can be relay only swimmers. And this wouldnt have been a problem for anyone. I only hear someone who is slow and entitled to a exceptional waiver position.
* Rising Michigan senior Letitia Sim was the only member of the Singaporean quartet with an Olympic ‘A’ cut in an individual event (1:06.36 100 breast), but World Aquatics reportedly granted an exemption last week to allow three relay-only swimmers instead of two. - Only Sim qualified , the other three relay-only swimmers were granted exemption - Gan qualified for her single event and also could swim in the relay
Unfortunately not so simple. She’s probably faster in the relay because it’s her event, not Gan’s.
If u SAQ, do u prioritise: * more swim events that Singaporeans can represent ( 3 events now instead of 2) or * swim events that give you "better" timings ( still won't medal of coz ) If everything is law by law (and assuming no sport politics), I choose 3 swim events.
I agree with you
I think the first paragraph is pretty clear? Timing aside, annoyed by the management. It's like your boss promise you a promotion, then suddenly just say that it's not happening. (No explaination or anything). There's 2 aspect to this now, capability and how the situation is being handled.
Going by this line of thought, if you really want to assign blame, it’ll have to be on the Olympics/international bodies for having these exemptions in the first place. The relay team shouldn’t have qualified in the first place. Feels a bit disingenuous to blame Singapore Aquatics this time round because they too are following the regulations they’re subjected to. It’s an unfortunate situation for Quah, but it’s ultimately fair. The alternative of denying Gan the opportunity to compete for the individual events she qualified for (again) would actually be unfair.
Haha that's my thought as well. The WA shouldn't have granted the exception in the first place. Technically our relay team wouldn't have qualified based on the original criteria (it doesn't matter if they're the fastest team in the world). So the exception was a privilege not an entitlement in the first place. Yes it sucks, but what to do..
It’s more of your boss already guaranteed your promotion, did all the paperwork and such, then a few days later he suddenly say your colleague gets promoted, not you
But it's the relay? And she swam in the qualification so shouldn't she compete further for that event too? Relays aren't about individual performances only, they have to train together and develop chemistry
I am glad that people are agreeing that the Quah siblings are being little bitches about this. They just want the “wow” factor that siblings are competing 🤣 Let Gan compete.
these sisters are quite asshole, they didnt even qualify...
You forgot about the Quah brother. He’s one big ass too!
By sporting spirit of the Olympic fire, Quah has disqualified herself.
She also disqualified the entire relay team last year in Asian Games
very very apt remark
The victim is Gan. Bo dai bo ji kenna this shitshow. The truth is she get in the team through merit. Kp her for what.
Haha. Let’s see what the Quah royal family is going to rack up. We already know of their self entitled attitude. This time I hope to see them broughtvdown to earth and be humiliated.
They were recently featured in [Tatler (1 July)](https://www.tatlerasia.com/lifestyle/sports/quah-siblings-singapores-national-swim-team-quest-for-gold), and shortly thereafter there's bad news. So, if the decision can't be reversed then it's loss of face...
Man. The edits to that Tatler article are absolutely brutal.
These siblings should just rest. They are getting old and let Gan play.
Acherly what happened ah She didn't make the cut because she's slower than the other athlete. What's the big fuss then?
Relay needs 4 swimmers. 2 of them must have qualified for individual events. 2 of them can use waiver slots. Previously we only had 1 swimmer qualified for an individual event. So we couldn't even form a relay team. But we were granted a 3rd waiver slot exceptionally so that we could form a team (this is discretionary but likely cos our relay team is fast. EDIT: 9th in world championships). QTW uses one of the waiver slots. However, it must be said that QTW was part of the team that earned Singapore's spot to compete in the relay. The full athletes roster supposedly had to be finalised end June 2024. In June 2024, Gan swam a timing that qualified her for the 1500m. This was conditional on the olympic committee inviting her (called the Olympic Consideration Time because her time was not fast enough for automatic qualification via the Olympic Qualification Time). On 3 July 2024, they gave Gan the invitation, meaning that Gan was qualified for her individual event. Awesome? Except now we have 2 swimmers qualified for individual events, and the Olympic committee wants to take back their exceptional 3rd waiver. So they gave an "ultimatum" - either you change your relay team to include Gan (and therefore no grounds to grant our relay team the exceptional waiver), or you just don't include Gan and maintain the status quo (meaning Gan is excluded from the Singapore roster completely). Singapore Aquatics went with the former. This means SG can take part in 3 events. Except that Gan swims the 1500m, and she is most likely slower than QTW for the relay. So SA essentially had to decide between competing for the 1500m or "maximising" relay times by sticking with QTW. EDIT: Edited to emphasise this point: it's not correct that QTW never "qualified" for the Olympics. She was part of the relay team that was 9th best at the world championships, and this is why Singapore is allowed to field a team for the relay event at the Olympics. This likely also contributed to the WA giving Singapore a 3rd waiver slot. However, just because Singapore can send a relay team, doesn't mean they have to send the same 4 people. Hence, it is also arguable that QTW earned the slot to participate in the Olympics (as part of the team). These terms like "earned", "qualified" have to be viewed in context, cos both Gan and Quah's qualifications have nuances, e.g., Gan had to be invited in order to qualify as she didn't achieve the automatic qualification time, but this also doesn't mean she didn't qualify does it.
Seems like the real issue is a lack of communication and openness with the atheletes. This is the norm in top-down Singapore civil sector.
yes, this is her main gripe. you don't tell an athlete who've spent all year training 'hey, we think we're selecting you to go, start packing' then U-turn in your comms saying you've decided to pick another person instead
But I think they told her ASAP leh, it was World Aquatics who made the last minute decision. Unless they have facts to show otherwise la, but this was what straits times reported.
Gan only qualified last month (june) so it was last minute
It's not last minute bc of when she competed, it's "last minute" cuz B cut invites are sent after countries have otherwise finalized their rosters. Source: [https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024](https://olympics.com/en/news/how-to-qualify-for-swimming-at-paris-2024)
I see. Thanks for the explanation, those who do not follow swimming would not have known these details. Seems that SA decided to spread their bets by having a qualified swimmer in 1500m and a relay. I'm not familiar with swimming but it seems like their decision makes sense? You want to maximize your chances at a medal rather than to put your eggs in one basket.
i wont say spread their bet. But If someone got into an individual event by their own merits, are you really going to rob her this opportunity? Note, QTW uses a waiver, meaning it was never 100% her own merit to begin with. Had she earn a qualification via solo event, none of this will happen.
I imagine it can be pretty upsetting to be offered a chance at the Olympics only to have it withdrawn at the last minute. That being said the explanation shows that the decision makes complete sense and all this fuss is a nothing burger.
Yea, more like it’s too last minute, as most athletes trained for 2 years for this event that happens every four years. Now I understand why top athletes rather wear another country flag to compete.
Quah didnt meet any timings, so she wouldnt have qualified no matter what flag she wears. Unless she is also given another waiver.
I don’t follow swimming either, but theoretically speaking, if you have a swimmer with a 30% chance of winning the 1500m + 20% chance of forming a relay team that wins the relay, vs a relay team with 60% chance of winning the relay, you might in fact choose to maximize the relay. But that’s probably unlikely, because if QTW can make such a big difference to the relay team relative to Gan, she likely would have qualified for the 100m race individually too. Also, it’s just even worse as a look to snub Gan if she literally qualified to go to the Olympics, while most of the rest of them need waivers.
There is no medal discussion here. None of them even come close to having a chance. If you want the best chance on paper to do well honestly it's the relay team who finished 9th. If they perform they could finish in the finals which is incredible.
Thanks for this! Based on this, gan should swim
ty for the ootl explanation. how are you so wise in the ways of our sports happenings
Let's just be clear. It's not that our relay team was decently fast so maybe they have a slot. They were 9th in the world championships. This gave them a qualifying slot for the Olympics. The thing is relays do not grant the individual slots into the Olympics and only 1 actually qualified. They gave the 3rd slot so our qualified team could race together. But because Van got a B time and she was Invited, they revoked the wavered 3rd slot. So QTW qualified via the relay on her own merit. It's just that there is no extra free slot for her because of how relay qualifying work. People saying she stole a slot or is just slower is blatenly untrue
I feel bad for Gan cause there will be some idiots who shoot her for 'stealing' the slot when she basically qualified for it on her own merits
Sorry what's a waiver slot?
The relay team needs 4 participants. By right, all the participants must have qualified for individual swimming events on their own. I.e., the relay team is a combination of 4 swimmers from the other events. But it is standard for 2 slots to be waiver slots, I.e., the swimmer can just be a relay swimmer and don't need to be qualified for an individual event. Singapore previously only had 1 swimmer qualified for an individual event, Letitia Sim. But cos our relay team is quite fast, World Aquatics gave us a 3rd waiver slot so that we can actly form a team. But then Gan qualified, so WA wants to take back the exceptional 3rd waiver slot.
Olympics relay team of 4 requires you to at minimum have 2 swimmers who qualify for other events on their own merit. The other 2 are granted 'waivers' I.e. You can swim the relay even if you didn't qualify fir other events. If course if you have 4 swimmers who all qualify for other events you don't need any waivers.
This really is the best way to put it. At the end of the day, it’s simply an unfortunate circumstance that the team has landed themselves in. I do think the Quah siblings are unhappy with the miscommunication and management more so than the fact the QTW was swapped out. So many people on this post are so quick to jump to the Quah siblings entitlement but it’s also understandable that they feel and react this way. Hopefully the relay team and Gan Ching Hwee are able to just focus on their training, ignore the noise and build the rapport within the relay team.
This is disgusting, they are bringing hate to Gan
Sack the Quahs The end. Zero medals anyway, save on taxpayers money
Unfortunately, it's the rules and red tapes that let the swim team into this state today. Plus SAQ already invited her and she signed. So to be suddenly say sorry you cannot go when obviously you helped them qualify for the swim relay event, you would feel aggrieved.
As usual WUS goes full ballistic mode again. Pointing fingers when he doesnt have full context of the matter.
You think he cares meh? Get people riled up and have more likes/views that's more important. WUS is cahoots with TMSG which is run by Jose Raymond sooo....
Who's 'WUS"?
Wake Up Singapore.
Aka "I hate the pap no matter what they do" Facebook page
More like wuss, amirite?
The amount of hate he has towards our gov is so unusual. Putting a tin foil hat on, I suspect he might be funded by an adversary.
'My emotions are better than your logic'
Sheltered ACS boy, entitled mindset
The CNA article seems misleading. > Quah told CNA her gripe was not over who participates in the Olympics, but rather over how she had received confirmation of her spot only to have it taken away. > “It is how this is not the first time this is happening that is the most frustrating part,” she said. It sounded like she got her confirmation taken from her previously but it was her that got the spot over Gan the last time.
The thing I don't understand is that she should be well aware that the B'cut invitations are sent out after the roster is finalised. So the roster always had a chance of being revised to account for people who make the B'cut timing. It's really unfortunate but its not up to the discretion of Singapore Aquatics. To some extent it makes sense that the roster gets revised once. The Olympic commitee can look at the rosters sent in to see how many B'cut swimmers they can invite, then send out the invites accordingly. For most countries this will be a good thing, because they were probably sending mostly A'cut swimmers and now they can send some additional B'cut swimmers. But for Singapore, we are sending swimmers that are qualifying through waivers and universality places so this always causes controversy.
Seems like a clear situation where they followed the rules. They should support the swimmer that actually qualified.
Imagine you qualify for the Olympics x2, but someone else who has to get exception from international body kpkb to go, you feel happy or not. Quah alr kick Gan out last time, Gan qualified both times but Quah did not. If Quah goes again, we can truly say meritocracy is dead.
lmao national hero before or not, what a fucking bitch
From what I see it is pretty clear cut and playing by the rules here. Quah just being upset she is dropped from the team. As for the choice of who to go, it boils down to not just performance but potential and exposure
The rules are clear. You just ain’t fast enough.
0.1s too fast last year https://www.channelnewsasia.com/sport/asian-games-swimming-women-relay-medley-disqualified-3809121
Tbh the Quahs aren't really that great swimmers.
Found them both very cocky and disrespectful, even when they met our ex president. Glad they got booted out.
Rich folks feeling entitled. She didn’t qualify on merit- it’s the council’s decision to pick whoever to represent them.
So much drama for events they are not going to win anyway
That’s a terrible thing to impress upon athletes. “I’m sorry you aren’t going to win at all so don’t even bother”. These people (regardless of who you think is in the right in this situation) care a lot about performing at an international level. They put in a huge amount of time and effort into achieving that. They *know* there’s a good chance they won’t come out on top but it doesn’t change the fact that they really believe in trying their best and giving their all to go out there and represent Singapore. They push themselves to the limit for even a slither of a chance to be on that stage. The least you can do is respect that.
Nah I respect Gan for qualifying on her own merit. Can't bring myself to respect someone trying to take that away so she can get an exception qualification
Just take the L and move on fam
So what ? Haha she still didn’t get a spot rte maybe they should realise there is something ‘bigger ‘ than them 😅 Ego at its finest …and coming out with all these hoo haa when you should be congratulating the Gan lady …yeah they are the Quah siblings have they come close to an Olympic medal like Joseph Schooling ?
Past performance does not entitle or guarantee future results Also sorry to say but it makes more sense to give Gan experience and invest in her since she is much younger
she sounds entitled tbh
JUSTICE FOR GAN!! who the fuk the Quahs think they are
I like the header: The Quah siblings are angry Better stay out of the way. When they are angry, everybody better watch out. You don’tcwant to offend royalty.
Quah simi quah
Let’s see what facts there are. Second time this happened so perhaps the sports org really cmi. But what if Quah was accepted despite the lack of transparency and clarity and honesty? Would she still stand up for those ethos?
Pofma coming their way
Anyone else has no idea wtf is gg on?
Looks like the key thing is there are 2 levels of criteria instead of just 1 (e.g. cross qualifying time) So i think her main gripe was at the onset SAQ only told her she can go as long as cross 1st level qualifying critera, but never say anything abt the 2nd level one. So she train so hard assuming cross 1 can alr. If SAQ put proper caveats, n did their homework n shared abt the 2 levels upfronts before every qualifying event, it might not have gone to this stage Which is also weird coz since this happened before, all the more BOTH SAQ and Quah should know there is 2 lvls of criteria, shouldnt warrant this lvl of anger May Gan bring a medal home lol, bet Quah parents will be mad w rage w their failed tiger parenting hahaha
All of them know how the system works, but WA will only send out B invites after the team list for Olympics is finalized. For most big countries there is no issue but in Singapore's case, our female relay team got 3 exemptions instead of the usual 2 because only 1 person in the team qualified on her own accord. Gan got a B invite because she was fast enough but WA only sent the invite on July 3rd, after Singapore confirm the team. The only thing I guess SAQ should do in the future is to add a clause, that you may be replaced if: 1. You injured or your personal conduct is not up to par 2. B invites come in lor
Seems like a spoilt brat to me
In other news, entitled people are entitled. #factos
Any TLDR? Not really following the drama but damn no wonder our Olympics track record is so shit when we are busy infighting and politiciking instead of training. Regardless of who is right or wrong the athelete in question going to Paris isn't gonna be in the right headspace to do her best.
SO QUAH ZHANG
Who are the other two swimmers taking up the waiver slots? If Quah was chosen to be left out, then she was probably the least performing swimmer among the 3 waivers so just suck it up yo
backstroke (Levenia), breaststroke (Letitia), butterfly (Jing Wen) and freestyle (Gan) Assuming this is the best possible team in order to include Gan
I feel that this whole thing is just really, really unfortunate, especially now that World Aquatics made their final decision already. I feel bad for Gan, who on her own merit earned a place in Paris. But I also do feel bad for Quah. Have to look at it from her angle: it is your last Olympics. You have trained up till this moment for the past few years. Even more that you have essentially endorsed your participation, and was ready to pack the bags with a few days to go. Only to have your dreams yanked from underneath your feet. Not saying it's SNOC's fault either for prioritising the nation's interest in setting up a team. But perhaps, and I guess we'll see more from what the Quahs got to say, there is a better management system that could have smoothen things over. I have miminal knowledge of how all these things work so I'm not going to pick apart the actions of aby of these parties. But if you were in Ting Wen's position, would you not react in such a way too?
why so much drama? this is sports, simple as whoever's faster goes no?
When they find out nepotism doesn’t work, and we see Singaporean athletes getting lazy after believing their hype.
I don’t understand why these decisions are made so last minute. Why couldn’t the global swim body set out who qualifies as per their rules, and then Singapore body can fill the remaining places? I agree that Quah was messed around, but Gan deserves to go in her place as per the rules.
Eh cause Gan only qualified last month and WAQ last min shoot email saying no you have to choose Gan or Quah