Sports exec pleads not guilty to child abuse

MANILA, Philippines - PhilSwimming, Inc. president Mark Joseph yesterday pleaded not guilty to child abuse case charges against him by an athlete.

Paul Jerome Carpio accused Joseph of writing a letter that caused him to be humiliated in front of fellow swimmers in Malaysia during the 43rd Sabah Age Group swimming championship at the Kota Kinabalu Sports Complex on Feb. 5, 2010. He was 17 at the time.

Carpio said he was one of the swimmers of the Aquatic Sports Association of the Philippines (ASAP), which was invited by the Penampang Swimming Association of Sabah to the international swim meet. He said his trip was financed by his parents. Carpio’s father is STAR assistant sports editor Gerry Carpio.

Joseph allegedly wrote the swim meet’s organizers, referring to ASAP’s swimmers as “rule-breakers and troublemakers” who tried to circumvent the rules of the Philippine Amateur Swimming Association (PhilSwimming, Inc.’s previous name) and Federacion Internationale de Natation.

Joseph allegedly told the organizers that he “cannot warrant that their identifications and ages are truthful as passports with fake dates of birth can easily be acquired in the Philippines.”

Because of the letter, the organizers took Carpio’s passport and questioned its authenticity, effectively embarrassing him in front of fellow swimmers.