Featured Image Credit: USTA
Topics: Sport, Film and TV, Social Media
Dan Seddon
Polish businessman Piotr Szczerek has doubled down on his remorse after 'snatching' a signed sports cap away from a child on live TV.
Whilst attending a blistering US Open tennis match between Kamil Majchrzak and Karen Khachanov on August 28, which finished 2-6 6-7 6-4 7-5 7-6 in the former's favour, TV cameras caught the Drogbruk CEO 'stealing' Majchrzak's gift to the kid who was sitting next to him.
In the viral footage, Szczerek can be seen putting the hat in a bag while the boy can be seen audibly protesting.
After the video circulated around social media, backlash soon followed, and Szczerek was later identified as the man in question.
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He took to his Facebook page to apologize profusely for his actions via a translator, writing in a statement that he'd made a 'grave mistake' and it wasn't his 'intention' to take the hat away from the young boy.
And now, he's issued a follow-up statement with a new update.
Szczerek's lengthy statement began by reiterating his previous apology to the boy, as he said: "In connection with the incident that occurred during Kamill Majchrzak’s match at the US Open, I would like to unequivocally apologize to the young boy, his family, all the fans, and the player himself.
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"I take full responsibility for my extremely poor judgment and hurtful actions. It was never my intent to steal away a prized memento from the young fan. I became caught up in the heat of the moment and the joy of the victory, and I believed Majchrzak was handing a hat to me to give to my sons, who had previously asked for autographs.
"Regardless of what I believed was happening, the actions I took hurt the young boy and disappointed the fans."
He then went on to say that he'd sent the hat back to the boy, adding: "I hope, at least to a small extent, I was able to repair the harm I caused."
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Szczerek also, once again, addressed false statements floating around on the internet, saying that neither he nor his family have commented about the situation online.
"We did not hire any law firm regarding this matter. All statements appearing online accredited to us were false and were not authored by us or our representatives." he added.
Meanwhile, Majchrzak told The New York Post that 'some kind of confusion' had resulted in the awkward moment.
"I was pointing, giving the hat, but I had a lot going on after my match, after being super tired and super excited for the win. I just missed it. I had like a dead look if you know what I mean. I’m sure the guy was also acting in the moment of heat, in the moment of emotions,” he said.