Taiwanese Taekwondo referee turns public enemy in controversy

One of the judges, a Taiwanese national, who gave the winning points to Tseng's opponent, faces condemnation back home.

The Taiwanese silver medalist of the Taekwondo Men Finals for the Hong Kong 2009 East Asian Games is in the center of media attention when he lost gold to the Korean opponent Jihoon Song - who allegedly struck Tseng's throat and caused Tseng to drop to the floor unconsciously during the game. Instead of calling a foul, the group of judges declared Song as the winner.

Asked about the incident, Tseng stated he is unsure what happened in the game and explained the apparent attack might have been an act of self-defense.

The silver medalist said he regretted for not grabbing gold but will work on scoring championship titles in future events.

He added that his throat is still experiencing discomfort when digesting food.

Tseng's coach, Chu Mu-yen, gold medalist for the Athen Olympic 2004, said he had anticipated Tseng to grab gold and thought the judge made a false call.

The Taiwanese judge, Chen Ta-wei, who did not call a foul for the reported attack but instead gave the final winning points to the Korean player, has apparently become a public enemy in Taiwan.

In response to media's allegation, Chen insisted that he had made a fair call according to the video footage which captured the hitting point at Tseng's headgear instead of on his throat.

Chen added the Taiwanese minister who was present at the game, has violated game rules and has shamed Taiwan by loudly voicing objection to the ruling in the venue. At the time of the incident, Ovid Tseng, minister without portfolio, vehemently denounced the judge's ruling.

He claimed that the audience at the final clearly saw the striking point was Tseng Chin-hsiang's throat.

The Taiwanese committee on Taekwondo said from a professional perspective, Chen made an unfair call at the game.

The committee added that they will no longer be employing Chen as a judge.

The Chinese Taipei team garnered two gold, nine silvers, and five bronzes in the 2009 East Asian Games.

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