In a recent interview with the former badminton champion, Taufik Hidayat, he revealed that a “Malaysian team manager” allegedly offered him IDR400 million (≈RM120,000) to lose a match against Lee Chong Wei back in 2006.
The interview was uploaded on the Indonesian broadcaster Trans TV’s YouTube on 21 August, where Taufik said that the incident occurred before the men’s singles semi-final clash between himself and Lee Chong Wei at the Doha 2006 Asian Games.
“Top athletes get this kind of pressures, and it is important not to be swayed by such approaches.” Taufik was quoted as saying by GoSports.
He added that the “Malaysian team manager” had requested for his phone number and when asked why he needed it, the “manager” offered him to intentionally lose the match to Lee Chong Wei.
The “manager” then asked Taufik how much he would receive as a bonus if he brings home the Asian title for Indonesia, which the “manager” then offered double of whatever bonus he would receive.
“How much will Indonesia pay you if you win, I would double it he said. I was emotionally disturbed and asked him how much he would want for his player to lose and I will pay.” said Taufik.
The offer was immediately rejected by Taufik as he finds this disgusting. He was left emotionally disturbed following the incident.
“I asked him how much would he want for his player (Lee Chong Wei) to lose, and I will pay. I was so angry that I told him if I ever see him in Indonesia, he would never go back again.” Taufik replied.
“He had the guts to ask me to sell Indonesia’s name, it is the same as selling my country.”
Nonetheless, Taufik went on beating Lee Chong Wei and Lin Dan of China in straight sets to win the champion title.
Lee Chong Wei’s response
After the incident went viral, Lee Chong Wei revealed that he did not know about the incident all this while as Taufik had not tell him about it, according to Malay Mail.
“He told me what had happened.”
“Thankfully for people like Taufik and me, national pride always comes first. I know who the person is, but it’s been so long since this took place. I believe we should all move on.” he said, as reported by NST.
Meanwhile, Lee revealed that he had been approached by bookies in the past but he had not entertained to any of them.
“I was young then. However, my country always comes first. That is why I stayed away from it.” he said.
Lee then advised the young athletes to not get involved with the underworld dealings as it would affect their future and careers.
“Although I come from a poor family, I never thought about money. No matter how difficult life was, I always fought to get the best results.” he was quoted as saying by Bernama.
Malaysia and Indonesia shuttlers bans by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) for match-fixing
According to Free Malaysia Today, the BWF had banned multiple shuttlers from Indonesia and a Malaysian official following a whistleblower report and subsequent investigation.
It was also reported that BWF found that these shuttlers and official were involved in match-fixing, match manipulation, and sports betting.
The 3 shuttlers were given a lifetime ban, while another 5 were suspended for between six to 12 years for their involvement.
On the other hand, it is also revealed that the Malaysian official was identified to be a representative of a sports equipment brand that sponsored multiple international players, and was also hit with a lifetime ban from the sport.
Back in 2018, BWF also issued bans to 2 Malaysian shuttlers for the same offences, namely Tan Chun Seang and Zulfadli Zulkiffli. This comes after a leaked WhatsApp conversation between them, as per Berita Harian.
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