Unfair refereeing costs Vietnam and the Philippines the SEA Games gold medal.
Vietnam and the Philippines have both spoken out, claiming that the SEA Games referees were biased in favor of Singapore in the semi-final and final matches of the taekwondo poomsae (forms) event.
Drama erupted over the taekwondo performance rights at the 33rd SEA Games when Trong Phuc and Kim Ha broke down in tears on the field after their controversial performance against Singapore. The two athletes claimed they were unfairly treated, especially since their performance was judged to be more coherent and synchronized than their opponent's.
Previously, Trong Phuc and Kim Ha had brilliantly defeated the Thai pair in the semi-finals. However, in the final, despite continuing to deliver a high-quality performance, they unexpectedly lost to Singapore. This result provoked a strong reaction from the Vietnamese team, who argued that the score did not accurately reflect their performance.
The team leader and coaching staff requested a review of the video footage, claiming that the referee had overlooked two to three technical errors by Singapore and had inaccurately scored Vietnam's performance. Even though Vietnam provided video footage recorded by reporters, the organizers refused to review it.
The decision to maintain the original scores left the two athletes devastated and in tears, creating a heartbreaking moment and sparking debate about the fairness of scoring at the 33rd SEA Games.
Not only Vietnam was upset, but the Philippines also immediately protested after their team encountered a similar situation. In the semi-final match against Singapore, the Philippines claimed that the referee overlooked many important technical details, leading to an inaccurate result. When they requested a replay of the video footage, they were refused, further increasing their dissatisfaction.
Mr. Tolentino, President of the Philippine Taekwondo Federation, stated that the outcome of winning or losing is less important than fairness. He affirmed that the Philippines has filed a lawsuit due to the unfair scoring system and expressed strong dissatisfaction that the referees refused to provide video footage to clarify the results.
Both Vietnam and the Philippines collected video clips of the match and submitted them to the organizers, but the referees did not consider them valid evidence. The process lasted nearly two hours, disrupting the schedule and creating a tense atmosphere in the arena.
Ultimately, the organizing committee decided to uphold the results. The incident highlights that refereeing issues in scoring events remain a hot topic at the SEA Games.
