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Tearful badminton player wants mercy for teammate Momota over casino visit

25 Comments
By Elaine Lies

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25 Comments
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Momota should quit badminton and run for Prime Minister now that he has this experience.

13 ( +15 / -2 )

@FizzBit: what experience?

0 ( +3 / -3 )

If the let this chimpira wannabe go to the Rio Olympics, it will send a terrible message to everyone. He knew it was wrong, and he still went. He thought he was above the law, and he isn't. I sometimes get angry at Japan when for example one member of a baseball team does something wrong, and the whole team is punished. But in this case, he is totally responsible for what he did. Tago didn't pull him kicking and screaming to the place, and he visited more than 6 times!

1 ( +7 / -6 )

Is this what's called satire?

5 ( +6 / -1 )

@ toshikko - The sincere apology experience

5 ( +7 / -2 )

If the let this chimpira wannabe go to the Rio Olympics, it will send a terrible message to everyone.

Chimpira wannabe? Are you joking? He's risen to the number two ranked badminton player in THE WORLD. Do you have any concept of the thousands of hours of hard work and dedication it takes to achieve that??

he visited more than 6 times

No, he actually visited six times, not more than six times.

I find it incredibly hypocritical of the Japanese government to let some forms of gambling (horse racing, pachinko, etc.) flourish while having such harsh penalties for other forms of gambling such as casino games. In fact, the current government is pushing for the opening of casinos in different areas of Japan, so how bad can it really be?

Give this kid a fine of a couple hundred thousand yen and let him compete!

.

3 ( +9 / -6 )

Gambling for money is illegal in Japan, but gambling for ball bearings is not. Good thing there's a market for used ball bearings, so much so that the shops are very conveniently located.

tearfully begged

bowed deeply and apologized for betraying their nation’s hopes

okay, sensitivities appeased

it would be hard to nominate Momota

but we will anyway because he's our only shot at a badminton medal
2 ( +4 / -2 )

Talking of the team-mate, I'm a bit surprised a badminton player outside the world top 50 can afford to gamble away five million yen a year. He'll have some sham job at a main sponsor that lets him play train everyday and go to tournaments with all expenses covered, but I wouldn't have expected them to fund such an extravagant lifestyle. It's a minor sport after all.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Kinji Zeniya ( Zeniya Kinji in Japanese) is an very old fashion name like from samurai era. And his thinking seems very old fashion too. Momota is already punished enough. Let him play at Rio. Force him some volunteer work after that.

-4 ( +4 / -8 )

@sensei:I did not know Japanese PM apologize sincerely.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Lesson here for both Kento Momota, Kenichi Tago is a career in Politics. All the scallywagging (english definition) MP's get up to and the vast majority a couple of deep bows and it's business as usual.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

a Ryutaro Nonomura fan perhaps. We've gone from NoNo to MoMo...

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

No mercy, no excuses. Face the consequences and after being rejected from Rio, try to change.

-1 ( +5 / -6 )

At least they apologized, in other countries those who did wrong will pretend nothing happen.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Let him go to the Olympics. How many athletes in other countries have been caught doing drugs, having sex with minors (but hey, 'they didn't know how old she was') or their team mates wives, abusing & beating their wife, gf or random blokes at the pub, driving without a licence etc. Yet most of them coped a fine and still made millions in their sport.

This is a very minor offence in a country where pachinko are ok and rich biz men go on Macau gambling binge weekends.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Hope Japan will begin to create some kind of rehabilitation program to treat addicted people.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

Smash his racket on a Pachinko machine to teach him a lesson about gambling.

1 ( +1 / -1 )

This could (opinion) be changeable at the international level, local laws are irrelevant. International badminton federation rules don't differentiate laws retaliating to gambling, as long as the participant is not betting on the event outcome/conclusion. Nippon Badminton Association could (opinion) have assumed and subsequently become judge and jury, deigning international participants fair completion.

Not letting these participants complete in Rio is tantamount to blowing ones foot off.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Most gambling is illegal in Japan and frequent gamblers could receive prison sentences. LOL geez this country is so two faced, WTF is Pachinko, who cares if ball bearings are used, they still can be exchanged for cash, so if you think about it its another type of currency a bit like Bitcoin and should be illegal. Just call it what it is! and stop with all the relabeling/disguising BS, a chameleon is still a chameleon no matter how many times it changes it colors

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Azrul Hakim: "At least they apologized, in other countries those who did wrong will pretend nothing happen."

You're kidding, right? The apology means nothing when they turn around, play it down, and as is usually the pattern are going to later say it was coerced or they were misinterpreted, or what have you. Don't tell me you forgot about the Japanese swimmer who stole the camera, admitted it and apologised, then when faced with expulsion from the swim team later denied he did it, and last we heard from him (despite video evidence) still denies it?

In any case, so what if they apologised. Should they be let off for literally breaking the law as a result? What we're seeing is celebrities being given a pass, or just a slap on the wrist, when they should not be. What happened to the Nippon Badminton Association talking about being "extremely strict"? I sense that the one guy is going to take the fall for Momota, saying "It wasn't his fault" like the gamblers in baseball are saying about the kid who got a one year suspension instead of being banned. I can tell you YOU would never get a pass if you did something illegal. Why should these guys? And how is it that four people admitting what they did has gone down to two?

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

"Most gambling is illegal in Japan"

Har! Then what's up with all the pachinkos and horserace tracks?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

You might think decision by Badminton Association harsh but they are preventing (trying) other sportsman 's behaving similar to Momota. They know top athlete are easily addicted to gambling. After all they became top with addiction to their game. Gambling addiction ruin not only their life but their family.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Like I said, gambling FOR MONEY, is illegal in Japan. Gambling for ball bearings and slot machine tokens is not. Neither is it illegal to sell those ball bearings or tokens afterward. It's a loophole in the law.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Talking of the team-mate, I'm a bit surprised a badminton player outside the world top 50 can afford to gamble away five million yen a year.

Kohakuebisu, Tago was a darling of the Badminton association long before Momota. He was at one point ranked 3rd in the world and had beaten the likes of Lee Chong Wei who at the time was world number one. He was seen as a prodigy and the son of the former Japan Women's badminton champion. A case of a child star coddled to the point of being irresponsible and seeing himself as above the law. Unfortunately dragging another talented individual with him.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

i saw on TV about this man crying, i dont understand the language, and then i search on google and found this... and what?? is not a big deal at all. If he want to gambling with his own money, so what?? maybe thats the way he want to spend his own money. i dont understand he cant gambling, but pachinko, prostitude was everywhere in japan. Japan? this is the rules... rules... try to relax, maybe with relax, japan people can reduce suicide people..

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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