NO FENG FRAUD, SAYS SPORTSG

It finds 'no evidence' to support ex-trainer's claims of misappropriation of public funds

- David Lee

National sports agency Sport Singapore (SportSG) has dismissed allegations against former national table tennis player Feng Tianwei over "claims of misappropriation of public funds" by an individual claiming to be her former physical trainer.

A person purporting to be Zhou Xiang recently levelled numerous accusations at the Olympic medal-list via a dossier containing over 100 pages.

The printed documents were sent to The Straits Times two weeks ago, and an anonymous e-mail carrying similar content was also sent to SportSG, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth and the media on Nov 10.

The dispute involving the individual claiming to be Zhou and Feng, who retired in 2022 and is now an assistant director at SportSG and principal of the ActiveSG Table Tennis Academy, is allegedly financial in nature, among other matters.

Responding to ST's queries, a SportSG spokesman said on Nov 19: "SportSG is aware of recent allegations stemming from a personal arrangement between retired paddler Feng Tianwei 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."

Noting that "a similar allegation raised by the same person in 2021" was determined to be "without merit", he added that the other matters "pertain to personal and contractual issues between both parties".