Hong Kong basketball coach apologises for slapping pupil in viral video
Hon Wah College says incident took place during the 2023-24 school year, adding coach involved had been suspended
A prominent Hong Kong basketball coach has apologised after a viral video showed him forcing a pupil to slap himself in front of others in a school playground circulated online.
The clip – involving basketball veteran Yung Kam-wah – also sparked concern from a child protection group, which warned that such acts could cause physical injury and emotional harm.
In the video circulating on social media platform Threads on Tuesday, three men in white T-shirts are seen standing around a boy in a school playground in broad daylight, surrounded by other students wearing basketball jerseys.
The man in the middle first takes a jacket from the boy’s hand and throws it to the ground, before grabbing the boy’s left hand and using it to slap his left cheek three times in quick succession.
After a brief pause, and without releasing the boy’s hand, the man slaps the boy’s cheek three more times with his own left hand, the force visibly moving the boy’s hair.
He then releases the boy’s hand and gestures towards him, prompting the boy to slap his own right cheek once with his right hand.