Intimidating our athletes

Gabriel Grixti is Malta’s reigning table tennis champion. He’s won three national senior singles titles and the national doubles title. He’s managed those amazing achievements while studying medicine. He’s currently in his final year, just weeks away from his finals.

But in the most unbelievable turn of events, he was not picked to represent Malta in the Small Nations Games. Instead, the Malta Olympic Committee selected five table tennis players who weren’t even born in Malta. Shortly before the 2023 GSSE, Malta granted Maltese passports to four foreign table tennis players.

When the young Grixti, hurt and disappointed, expressed his incredulity that despite being Malta’s champion, he was still left out of the Maltese team, the Malta Olympic Committee publicly threatened him. “It is advisable for Mr Grixti to make sure not to write unfounded and incorrect information about the MOC and team members/players just to create hate against Maltese sports and Maltese sportspeople (sic).  Good to mention that the players Mr Grixti is trying to attack, have given back to the country”.

This was an official statement uploaded onto the MOC website. That statement is shockingly atrocious in every aspect.  Who wrote it? Who approved its publication?

Firstly the language is totally mangled.  It looks like it’s been written by an illiterate.  But what’s far more deplorable than its grammar and syntax is its content.

That statement is not only abusive, threatening and intimidating but also reveals personal details of Malta’s table tennis champion.  The MOC used an official statement to pummel Malta’s young and promising table tennis champion into submissive silence.

The injustice the MOC perpetrated by excluding him from the national team was aggravated by their public aggression targeting the national champion.

“Being a small state, it’s very nice to be the national champion; however, the weight given to the title is not high,” the MOC statement read.

A ten-year-old could have written a far more coherent statement. This is the National Olympic Committee belittling the achievements of the national champion and publicly informing him that it’s not enough to be a national champion to get picked.

“It’s very nice to be the national champion”? It’s a massive achievement for anybody, let alone a young medical student juggling his studies and his sport to become the singles national champion three times and also doubles champion.

That takes discipline, hard work, dedication and stamina.  The young man deserves praise, encouragement and support not threats and abuse by semi-literate morons.

If that’s how the Malta Olympic Committee treats its top athletes and its national champions, the whole committee should be sacked.  They’re bullying and intimidating the champion when their role should be supporting the development of our athletes.

“Nonetheless, an athlete needs to show that they deserve to be part of this scheme if not the said taxpayers money are wasted,” the committee threatened in pidgin English.

The only wasted taxpayer money is that going into the pockets of the committee members and into the pockets of whoever writes their terrible statements. Their place is in a primary school learning basic manners and how to write, not on a national olympic committee.

“It is very worrying when Mr Grixti feels fit to be part of the team while pointing the faults that he assumes and invents on the rest of squad whilst ill-mouthing them,” the committee continued, determined to massacre the English language. Read and weep. That statement is a national embarrassment.

“May Mr Grixti be reminded that during last edition when held in Malta, Mr Grixti opted to abandon the team halfway with the excuse to study instead of cheering and supporting the team to victory,” the MOC statement continued. “The world of sports changed and keeping the mentality of ‘we are small state and I am the national champion’ does not fit in the MOC’s vision.”

“Whilst it is an honour to be the national champion, however, the MOC is setting a higher standard,” the MOC concluded. That’s utterly hilarious and symptomatic of the committee’s cluelessness.

That MOC statement demonstrates one thing – and it’s not “a higher standard”.  It exposes the vicious, vile and petty mindset of a committee intent on seeking retribution, determined to humiliate and castigate Malta’s national champion simply for demanding fairness and justice.

“The MOC understands and appreciates that he is a student in his final year of University – and we take this opportunity to publicly wish him best of luck for his exams – however, this does not give an advantageous excuse against the other players who attended training and competitions,” the MOC added.  “Like everything in life, every person and entity have their priorities. The MOC accepts that the (sic) Mr Grixti’s priorities were his studies but amicably Mr Grixti needs to accept that the MOC needs to choose the best team for Malta”.

This is just outrageous.  It’s painful to read and depressing to witness the sheer amateurism evident in that statement.

If Grixti’s priorities are his studies, as the MOC condescendingly claimed, and yet he still managed to become Malta’s champion three times, he must be incredibly talented. You’d think such a gifted national champion deserves to represent his country in the Small Nations Games.  What he certainly doesn’t deserve is the abuse and public assault mounted by his own semi-literate olympic committee.

Gabriel Grixti merits the country’s support and admiration for his incredible achievements.  He is a true champion.

As for the Malta Olympic Committee, they should hang their head in shame.  The Sports Minister should act swiftly to bear pressure to ensure the vicious amateurs responsible for that statement are removed from the national Olympic Committee.

The minister must ensure that our athletes are treated with respect and provided with all the support they require, not harangued and abused by the committee.  A reconstituted committee should withdraw that vile statement and immediately apologise to our national table tennis champion and to the entire nation.

Editorial note: The language in the quoted MOC statement has not been edited to reflect the opinion writer’s point.