SINGAPORE: Sport Singapore (SportSG) has refuted an allegation made against former Singapore national table tennis player Feng Tianwei.
Feng, Singapore’s most bemedalled Olympian, has also denied any impropriety. She is currently employed by SportSG as assistant director of the ActiveSG Table Tennis Academy.
In a statement on Tuesday (Nov 19), SportSG said it was aware of “recent allegations”, which it said stemmed from a personal arrangement between retired Feng and her former personal fitness coach.
“As one of the allegations involved the possible fraudulent use of public monies, SportSG’s checks on our records indicate no evidence to support claims of misappropriation of public funds,” said a spokesperson for the statutory board.
It added that there was a similar allegation raised by the same person in 2021, which was determined to be without merit.
“The other matters raised pertain to personal and contractual issues between both parties,” said the spokesperson.
An email detailing allegations against Feng was sent to CNA earlier this month.
The sender claimed to be Feng’s former “personal physical coach” Zhou Xiang. Among other allegations, he claimed Feng asked him to teach her how to swim, and cited this as an example of “suspected … misappropriation of public funds for personal use”.
WHAT FENG SAYS
Feng told CNA she worked with Zhou Xiang for seven months from April to October 2018, during which she personally paid for his coaching fees, living expenses and travel costs.
“During this period, there were no financial disputes,” she added.
She said Zhou was a graduate student at the Shanghai University of Sport at the time, and that their arrangement involved him assisting her with physical training. The role also served as an internship for Zhou, contributing to his academic thesis, said Feng.
Zhou resigned in October 2018, citing the need to focus on his thesis, she added.
“During this period, there were no conflicts between us, and I believed there was potential for us to work together again in the future.”
However, Feng said that since 2018, Zhou has been harassing her, her family and friends through “insults, defamatory remarks, personal attacks, and other abusive behaviour, causing significant mental stress” for her family and herself.
“In 2021, Zhou Xiang even made false accusations against me to Sport Singapore. Following an investigation, Sport Singapore found the claims unsubstantiated, and issued a formal response to him,” she said.
“I have refrained from addressing this matter publicly, but I would like to take this opportunity to formally respond, as I hope to put an end to this six-year ordeal, and focus on my post-retirement career and family life.”
Feng also said that to “safeguard” her rights, she has since engaged a legal counsel to gather evidence of Zhou’s “defamatory statements and acts of privacy violations”.
“Should he persist in his unlawful actions, I am prepared to pursue legal actions to protect my rights and interests,” she said.
