My Take | Burden should not be on athletes to avoid further anthem blunders
- Their job is to focus on performance and it is event organisers and team officials who should ensure that the correct song is played
A spate of blunders involving a protest song being played instead of China’s national anthem at international events has cast a shadow over Hong Kong’s sports community.
The latest error saw “Glory to Hong Kong”, associated with civil unrest in the city in 2019, played at an ice hockey match in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
This time, the consequences could be serious. The Hong Kong Ice Hockey Association allegedly failed to follow guidelines intended to prevent such mistakes. It faces suspension from the Hong Kong Sports Federation and Olympic Committee and a loss of funding. The move has sparked a row between the ice hockey group and the federation over where the blame lies and concerns about the impact of any sanctions on the players.
The blunders have been unfortunate. But they should not be difficult to fix. The wrong song was first played at a rugby sevens match in South Korea in November. It caused a storm in Hong Kong.
A complaint was made to South Korea’s consul general. A police investigation by the Organised Crime and Triad Bureau, no less, was ordered. Rugby players and officials were questioned and quickly cleared of blame. A local sports official called for South Korea to be banned from hosting events and a lawmaker made an outrageous call for the rugby team to be disbanded.
The furore can, in part, be explained by the sensitivity surrounding anything linked to the 2019 protests. There was a suspicion the blunder was part of a dark plot to undermine Hong Kong. It is now accepted this was an innocent mistake by two interns. There was no ulterior motive. It always looked that way.