Hong Kong’s triathlon governing body said on Thursday that there was no fault in the wetsuit worn by Jason Ng Tai-long after a tear in the garment hampered his performance in the swimming leg of the competition in the Paris Olympics.
Ng’s tightfitting suit and its zip were damaged after “physical contact” with another athlete and it let in water, which caused drag, and he was unable close it back up again.
But the Triathlon Association of Hong Kong China said the incident did not mean there was a fault in the wetsuit.
“The unexpected damage to the zip during the swimming segment was due to the intense competition and physical struggle between the athletes and does not reflect any quality issues with a particular brand,” an association spokesman said.
The association was speaking a day after Ng, 24, said he had a good start in the swimming event alongside South African Jamie Riddle.
His suit was torn as the triathletes bunched together under a bridge only 200 metres into the race on the River Seine.
The zip became stuck halfway down his back and the Olympics debutant was unable to pull it back it up and finished well down the field.
Fellow triathlete Wong Tsz-to told a radio show on Thursday such incidents were rare but that he had his swimwear “torn apart” once.
“It is rare to see the zip open. but it is predictable,” Wong said.
“In the end, there is more physical contact between athletes in swimming. We expect there is contact.”
Wong explained triathlete swimwear was specially designed to prevent water from getting inside.
But water could get in if the zip was open and cause drag, which could slow a swimmer down.
Wong said there was little a competitor could do in that situation and they could only press on.
He added triathletes could not spare much time to stop and try and fix a damaged wetsuit.
Wong was backed by Lobo Louie Hung-tak, a senior lecturer in health and physical education at Education University, who highlighted that Ng’s kit was specially designed in line with sports science and should not have developed a problem.
He added it was an unfortunate incident, but that physical contact occasionally happened in the open water swimming section of the gruelling competition, which also includes cycling and running.
Professor Yick Kit-lun of Polytechnic University’s school of fashion and textiles said the coiled zip shown on Ng’s wetsuit typically was strong, making such damage uncommon with possible causes including wear and tear and misaligned coils.
“The quality of the zip may be an issue. It is suggested not to compress or pull the zip excessively. If the compression of the wetsuit is too high, it can result in excessive stress on the zip, causing it to break,” Yick said.
Ng later pulled up 18.7km into the 40km cycling leg of the competition, one of five of the 55 starters that failed to finish.
The triathlete said it was heartbreaking that his Olympic hopes had been dashed just two minutes into the swimming event after two years of hard work to qualify.
He said he had “nothing to show for it” and “didn’t even finish the race,” despite pushing hard in the cycling segment to avoid being lapped out.
The association said it would not dwell on the regrettable circumstances, whether the damage was caused by intense competition or possible intentional sabotage.
“Instead, we should give Jason some time and space to process the emotions and the incident, allowing him to regroup and refocus on his training,” the spokesman said.
“We hope that in future competitions, he will have the opportunity to once again demonstrate his true abilities to everyone.”
