KUALA LUMPUR – Following the latest online abuse experienced by Soong Joo Ven, the independent men’s singles shuttler is doing his best to hold his ground and resist the attacks on his social media account.
Still traumatised by the threatening messages he received on social media, world No. 51 Joo Ven said he refused to let the matter affect him while he competes at the Orleans Masters this week.
“I am saddened and disappointed with what has happened, but I cannot afford to be distracted by this right now.
“I will deal with this after I return from the Orleans Masters,” he said when contacted today.
On Saturday, the 28-year-old shuttler expressed on his Twitter account that he was “scared of Instagram. Some people will curse and swear at you or your family, which is ridiculous”.
This is the reason why sometimes I’m scared of ig. Some people will curse and swear on you/your family which is ridiculous pic.twitter.com/zw8ornE8Cr
— Soong Joo Ven (@soongjooven) April 1, 2023
He also shared screenshots of messages with vulgar words as well as death and rape threats against him and his family members.
This comes after his defeat at the qualifying round of Spain Masters recently.
Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh took note of the incident and said her team will look into the matter.
She said online abuse is also within the scope of harassment in the Safe Sport Code launched last month, and that police could investigate should there be a criminal element.
Aside from the disturbing online messages, he is also suffering from a heel injury, which made him feel like giving up, but he is persevering through the Orleans Super 300 tournament.
“To be honest, I felt like giving up, but the draw in Orleans Masters seems favourable, so I want to give it a shot,” he added. – The Vibes, April 5, 2023
