Two Singapore hurdlers, Ang Chen Xiang and Kerstin Ong, set national records on Dec. 12 at the SEA Games. Ang finished second in the 110m hurdles with a national record of 13:75 seconds, while Ong, in her SEA Games debut, secured the national record in the 100m hurdles with a time of 13:47 seconds. Or at least they did before their timings, and everyone’s timings for the evening session were scrapped due to technical issues with the timing system. Their placements, however, remain valid. The 28-year-old Ong told The Straits Times (ST) that she was disappointed by the development, though she figured the timing was “definitely off”. She hopes that an actual time, 13.85 seconds, will be allowed to stand and has since lodged an appeal using video evidence. She posted a video on her Instagram Stories that showed the timing. Commenting on the system issues, Ong told ST that athletes would naturally want to do their best and record their best times at the “highest SEA level”. To have their results not recognised made her feel like they “ran and prepared” for nothing. Despite the kerfuffle, Ong was quite clear on what she had to do. According to CNA, the Singapore National Olympic Council secretary-general Mark Chay expressed “deep concern” with the “reported failure of the timing system”. In his letter to the South East Asian Games Federation, Chay said this incident not only affected the “credibility of the competition” but also raised questions on the reliability of the timing company”. In a letter to team managers seen by ST, the timing problem was due to “power supply and inconsistent Internet facilities”. ST says they understand a new timing company has been appointed. Image from Ong’s Instagram
