When (do) boys become men

Let me use this rather celebratory shot here, though you can't quite see the face of this surely-very-happy nineteen-year-old.

Well done, young man! Somehow, he reminds me of Henman - understated, no flasy attire, no histrionics, no racket-flinging, no ranting at umpires and linesmen, etc. Well, I hope this final augurs well for men's tennis. It was getting rather boring, with the same old thing happening again and again in the various finals.
(pic source)

As for these two... er... boys, I shall call them, I don't know what to say. The whole of the TODAY article is here. A summary: 2 S'porean swimmers at the recently concluded World Championship reportedly 'pointed at the "DSQ" (disqualified) listed next to the United States on a television monitor and smiled' at the end of one of the heats.

Some reactions:
'We have zero tolerance for mistakes in relays. Why should the boys be smiling when they understand the severity of those mistakes?' (S'pore swimming official)

Yes, why indeed...

'What baffles me is why didn't the reporter ask our swimmers why they were smiling? The reporter should not have singled out any team, for any form of emotion or reaction. Different people will interpret those emotions and reactions in different ways.' (S'pore swimming official)

How would the boys have answered, I wonder...

And from the horse's mouth:
'The swimmers say it was all a misunderstanding... (one of the boys) said he smiled "in shock" when the decision was flashed on the scoreboard. "We were both smiling, not because we were happy that the Americans were disqualified — it was really hard to believe, that was all it was."'

Excuse me? SMILING in shock and disbelief?

Comments

Lam Chun See said…

Frankly I think it's a small thing. Smiling only wat. What's the big deal. I think those people are making a mountain out a mole hill. It's not as if they were clapping or dancing with joy. I think it's all a misunderstanding.

11:43 pm

Anonymous said…

Yeah, that seems to be the story now, that it's a misunderstanding. However, such misunderstandings can be avoided if the boys are more aware that they are in full public/media view any time they are in a swimming complex during a competition.

2:46 pm

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