Just two days ago, it was a dream come true for local powerlifter Matthew Yap when he set a new world record of 208kg in the Under-66kg sub-junior category at the World Classic Powerlifting Championships in Minsk, Belarus.
But what was supposed to be a feel-good ending turned out to be a bit of a nightmare as Matthew and his brother, Marcus, encountered a visa mix-up at immigration and missed their flight back to Singapore.
According to Powerlifting Singapore media officer Daphne Loo, the brothers were detained in Minsk due to a “visa mix-up”, as they were mistakenly told they did not require a visa upon entering Minsk. Officials demanded they hand over a US$600 (S$830) fine for their release, but the champs had no money on them, and so the fine was waived. Unfortunately, they missed their flight and were told to secure their own tickets to Singapore.
As a result, Loo started a crowdfunding campaign to get them home, and the amount required was achieved in an equally record-breaking (hur hur) one hour. According to the crowdfunding campaign page, Loo described the situation as “a very traumatic experience” for the brothers.
“Having worked 10-hour shifts at a Korean eatery and saving their allowances just to be able to make this trip to Belarus to compete, there was no way they could afford this. They had already spent SGD5,500 for this chance to win the World Record,” Loo added.
“All our athletes are self-funded. Powerlifting Singapore is not a National Sports Association and we do not receive funding for our athletes,” Powerlifting Singapore wrote in a Facebook post.
Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also managed to get German carrier Lufthansa to lower the price of the tickets from €949 to €603 (S$1470 to S$935). The campaign has since ended successfully with a total amount of S$2,685 (one anonymous donor donated $2,000). As of 1am on Thursday, Matthew posted on Facebook: “An update: We have reached our targeted goal. Marcus & I are lost for words. So thankful for the concern and support everyone has shown.”
The boys will fly back to Singapore via Frankfurt on the next available flight, which is on Friday (Jun 23).
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