SINGAPORE — A day after national marathoner Ashley Liew decided to sue fellow athlete Soh Rui Yong for defamation, Soh dug his heels in, saying in a Facebook post on Wednesday (June 19) that he is “happy that this is going to court”.

The latest developments come after both were embroiled in a dispute over the past eight months. Soh said that Liew’s claims of him slowing down during a race in the 2015 SEA Games are “untrue”.

Liew had been widely praised and even won awards for his act of sportsmanship during that race, in which he was reported to have slowed down so that other runners could catch up after they missed a U-turn.

In a statement on Tuesday, Liew said that he has “no choice” but to ask the court to vindicate his reputation as Soh has repeatedly refused to apologise and retract his statements, even after Liew’s lawyers sent him a letter in April this year.

He added that he holds “the values of honesty and integrity in high regard”.  

“Soh’s actions on social media have caused Singaporeans to question my integrity and that crosses the line. Soh’s false statements and aggravating comments have not only hurt my feelings but also disparaged my reputation,” he added.

In his statement to the court, the 32-year-old said that his reputation has been “seriously damaged” and that he has “suffered hurt, distress and embarrassment” from Soh’s defamatory statements.

In court documents seen by TODAY, Liew said Soh’s comments implied that Liew was a liar and did not deserve the awards and recognition he received from his act of sportsmanship.

He is requesting a court injunction to restrain Soh, 27, from repeating any of the statements he made earlier and to also remove them.

He is also asking for a court order that will get Soh to retract his earlier allegations and publicly apologise to Liew.

Soh may have to pay damages for libel.

On Wednesday, Soh said on Facebook that he is “happy” this dispute is going to court and he hopes that “the truth (will) finally see the light of day”.

He added: “I'm all for sportsmanship, but it must be true acts of sportsmanship and not made-up stories.”

He again repeated his earlier-made statements that Liew did not slow down and instead, the runners who made the wrong turn “had to chase him for several minutes to make up the ~100m gap he had”.

Soh also slammed the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) for failing to conduct a proper investigation of what happened during the race, and choosing to speak only with “witnesses from one side”.

“There are several people who saw that Ashley did not slow down, yet SNOC refused to talk to any of them to get their take on the situation. The SNOC has failed to stay neutral and credible in the fact-finding process, and I have lost respect for the organisation that is supposed to represent the epitome of sporting values in Singapore,” Soh added.

In April this year, SNOC sent a legal letter to Soh, demanding that he publicly retracts his allegations and admits that his claims were wrong.

SNOC said in its letter that it has interviewed “various individuals” who witnessed the event that day following Soh’s claims. At least four of them have provided the council with sworn statutory declarations that they saw Liew slowing down to allow other runners to catch up.

It also offered Soh the opportunity to view these declarations but it was not taken up.

The sporting body had nominated Liew for his actions during the race to the International Fair Play Committee for the Pierre de Coubertin World Fair Play Trophy, which he then won in 2016.