The 33rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Thailand witnessed a significant controversy when members of the Malaysian Pencak Silat team were involved in a physical altercation with a referee. This incident occurred following a disputed match in the quarterfinals, which saw a Malaysian athlete lose to the host nation, Thailand.
The contentious match featured Malaysian athlete Nor Farah Mazlan competing against a Thai opponent in the 50-55kg weight category. The contest concluded with both athletes achieving an equal score of 60-60. However, the referee ultimately awarded the victory to the host nation’s athlete, citing the official tie-breaking rules which penalized the Malaysian athlete, Farah, for accruing more errors during the course of the bout.
This decision deeply disappointed the Malaysian Pencak Silat contingent, who immediately launched a protest. They contended that the referee had not adequately considered the scoring and that Farah had, in fact, held an advantage throughout the match. Despite their fervent appeals and the coaches’ insistence, the judges and referees disregarded their claims, maintaining the initial ruling.
The situation escalated dramatically when coach Siti Rahmah Mohamed Nasir, accompanied by Nor Farah and other team members, confronted the group of referees to further contest the decision. As the officials stood by their ruling to declare Thailand the winner, the tension boiled over, leading to a physical scuffle between members of the Malaysian team and the referee. Security personnel and police officers were promptly dispatched to intervene and de-escalate the conflict.
Despite the mounting pressure and the highly public nature of the incident, the organizers of the 33rd SEA Games upheld the original match result, confirming Thailand’s victory. Images and videos of the altercation quickly spread across social media platforms, igniting widespread debate and heated discussions among citizens in both Malaysia and Thailand. Malaysian media outlets, including Sarawak, criticized the referee’s scoring as lacking professional clarity. However, these same outlets also condemned the Malaysian athletes’ behavior towards the official, deeming it unacceptable.
This incident was not an isolated event at the 33rd SEA Games in Thailand, which had been plagued by various organizational issues from its opening days. Earlier problems included a lack of attention to playing national anthems during the men’s football match between Vietnam and Laos. Technical difficulties were also reported in displaying national flags for other competitions, such as women’s football and women’s volleyball. Furthermore, the opening ceremony itself experienced frequent technical glitches. Beyond these issues, problems with inadequate food provisions, particularly for Muslim athletes, and significant delays in athlete transportation were also reported throughout the Games.
