With great aplomb, Mom informed me over the phone that Singapore secured its 2nd Olympic medal in 48 years. I knew about it, and unbeknownst to her, I was also observing the enormous explosion of comments and responses from Singaporeans after the haul. I knew it wasn’t going to be a straightforward matter.

A really ironic factor in a novel, don’t you think? China-born and raised foreign talents imported into Singapore to clinch a medal, and they won it doning Singapore’s crescent and stars, whilst standing on their home ground in Beijing. What emotions and feelings were going through their heads? I, for one, would really want to know.

Negativity was heavy in most of the sentiments I came across. It was really sad.

I’m not so sure where I stand. As a foreigner in another land, I deem myself an outsider on the shores I live and work in. My bonds and emotional attachments remain in Singapore, because my memories and loved ones are there. It is a place where I exist. It is a place where people love and remember me. Not in Exeter, Perth nor Melbourne. The level of intimacy cannot be forged overnight to replace 22 years in Singapore.

Many Singaporeans cry foul that these foreign imports will relinquish their Singaporean citizenships and return to China, since their “mission” is completed. It is heartening to know that some don’t blame the foreign imports, but rather, the circumstances that caused this dilemma to arise. Whether they formed a bond with Singapore or not, they did perform according to what was expected of them. Whatever they do next is simply up to their discretion. That is the sort of agreement in the beginning, and that is all to it.

A silver Olympic medal is attained, but at such costs. I don’t even feel right to comfortably congratulate myself, a Singaporean, that we have earned one. It feels like a procurement. I just can’t, and I know many of us share the same views.

Sitting here, watching how the Australians are rooting noisily for their national team invariably creates a sharp contrast. There is no fuss, no wuss, just a nation single-mindedly supporting their team. Australia is also a multi-cultural nation with immigrants streaming in by the minute. But there is still a difference between the two nations. And oh, what a difference!

Being abroad draws attention to my origin. Am I foremost Chinese, and then a Singaporean? Or is it the other way round? When people ask me if I’m Korean or Japanese, do I say I’m Chinese? Koreans from Korea, Japanese from Japan, but a Chinese can derive from various areas in modern times. And I always have an overwhelming urge to say that I’m Singaporean, although it’s not the right answer to an ethnical question.

The immigrants in Australia are absolutely comfortable in their own skins. They’re proud of being 2nd, 3rd or 4th generation Italians, Spaniards, English, Irish, Greek and so on. China-borned Chinese have no problems being Chinese. The issue arises when it comes to Singaporeans and Malaysians, because we are propelled to deny that we are from China (for various reasons).

I think nationalities are flexible, but ethnicities are not. You cannot deny you’re Indian when you are. I cannot deny I am Chinese. If you wish to stretch the argument, modern-generation Singaporeans and Malaysians all had forefathers primarily hailing from China and India, and so, we should all be celebrating our medal because we originated from the same place as our foreign imports.

But ultimately, that sense of belonging does not apply to them, as it does to Singapore-borned citizens. We hardly see China-Chinese, Koreans or Japanese teams with foreign ethnicities when it comes to representing their nations, when it really counts. We want people who really love the country, who laughs and cries with us, who gets our jokes and kampung stories. I think that’s really all it is. Bond with us. A white guy who was borned and bred in Singapore should also be considered a Singaporean since he experiences the same things as his Malay or Indian neighbours. But who’s to say we shouldn’t be proud of our ethnicities? Immigrants in Australia are proud of their origins, but they are fiercely loyal to Australia. Both worlds can meet, only if the individual wants to, and if the environment is safe and nurturing enough.

I think the issue is, there is speculation that these foreign imports probably do not love Singapore. They have done what they are paid to do, and so, I feel that this medal seems to be bought. It lacks the intrinsic value of a person who truly wishes to bring glory to the country. And really, that’s what the Olympic spirit is all about. Representatives from all the participating countries competing to see their countries’ flags hoisted high, and stretching their own limits as athletes.

A transaction of a Singapore citizenship for an Olympic silver medal is fair deal per se, but it is at the cost of the value of a Singapore citizenship. Citizens can only wonder how much pride we can take in being a Singaporean, when it is readily sold for a profit. I know most Singaporeans can’t be bothered to take up sports as a full-time job, but how many of those bubbling talents had been stubbed over the generations in favour of academic brilliance? Can we surely say there were none? Can we also say we truly have no talent in sports? None? Zero? Zilch? I don’t really think so, but as there isn’t a great environment for people to explore their latent gifts properly and in their own time, well, foreign imports are the shortcuts to successes in areas where Singaporeans aren’t given time to grow and blossom in.