read!!!!..(*_*)

SINGAPORE: A teenager whose kick to his opponent’s headguard in a taekwondo competition last July led to the latter’s death told a coroner’s inquiry on Thursday that he had not intended to hurt the youth who died.

During the four—hour—long hearing, a video of the match was played.

Both the deceased, Vincent Tan Sze Hao, and the teenager, who was not named following his family’s request, wore protective gear during the competition.

Vincent, 17, was seen kicking the body pad of his 15—year—old opponent. The latter kicked him back. The kick landed on Vincent’s headguard.

As Vincent adjusted his headguard, he wobbled and fell to the ground. He was taken to hospital where he died.

The unnamed teenager was in court earlier in the morning but left after falling ill.

The youngest child in his family, he had taken up taekwondo five years ago. His statement was read out in court on his behalf.

"I did not intentionally wanted to injure Vincent ... I was just scoring points, thus I got to kick on his headguard," he said in his statement.

The Secondary 4 boy added that the accident was unexpected and he feels very sad about it.

Hospital doctors found that a blood vessel in Vincent’s neck had broken and caused a blood clot in his head, leading to swelling of the brain.

The courtroom was packed with Vincent’s friends and family members. His mother shed tears several times during the hearing.

The court was told that Vincent was a blue belt — a grade lower than his opponent who was a brown belt.

The boys belonged to clubs affiliated to the Singapore Taekwondo Gymnasium (STG), and STG rules allowed for such a contest then.

Vincent’s coach, Mr Tong Tuck Weng, who testified on Thursday, said: "I assessed Vincent to be able to handle his opponent, although he is of a higher grade."

The STG has since changed the rules to only allow contestants aged 18 and above to be kicked in the head during competitions

kesian dekat budak yang tendang vincent tu

mesti trauma sebab..yelaaa..terbunuh org kann..

mesti penuh rase guilty di dada..

xpe2..kakak paham..(^_^)