The man who took a boy’s hat from him immediately after the child’s tennis hero, Kamil Majchrzak, signed it in full view of the camera, has been outed as an executive for a Polish paving firm.
The incident occurred on August 28 after the Polish sportsman beat Karen Khachanov at the US Open, and it snowballed into an internet furore, with many slamming the culprit.
Highlights
- A man purported to be an executive of an Eastern European company was caught on camera snatching a signed hat from a young fan at the US Open.
- The incident happened after Kamil Majchrzak’s five-set victory over Karen Khachanov.
- A company claiming to represent the CEO said he had done “nothing wrong.”
When Majchrzak became aware of the incident, he tracked down the boy to give him another hat.
Meanwhile, an entity claiming to be a partner of a Swedish law firm representing said child-robbing man has opted for arrogance, claiming that he had done nothing wrong and the action was best interpreted as a lesson in gratitude.
The internet has since dubbed him worse than the “worst person you know”
Image credits: kamilmajchrzakk
Majchrzak celebrated his victory after five sets against Russia’s Khachanov by signing fans’ autographs on the side of the court.
Among the fans crowding the barrier were two boys and a tall, slightly-built man wearing shades and a hat.
After signing a tennis ball, the winner removed his hat and offered it to a boy while looking at something to his left.
Not expecting the tennis star to give him his hat, the boy was slow to register, and the tall man could be seen grabbing the item and stashing it into a female associate’s bag.
Barstool Sports on X captioned footage of the incident: “The worst person you know is still a better human than this guy,” summing up a snowballing sentiment on the internet.
The tennis star, Kamil Majchrzak, reached out to the boy and gave him a new hat
The footage has become so popular that it prompted a response from the tennis star and he wrote on Instagram:
“After the match, I didn't record that my cap didn't get to the boy,' he wrote. 'Thanks to @asicstennis, I've got enough caps, so I'm prepared for that.”
“Hey guys, could you help me find the kid from my match. If it's you (or your parents see this), please send me a DM.”
Majchrzak’s appeal was rewarded hours later, and he notified his fans saying:
“I am impressed by the power of the internet. We got it! All good now.”
An entity claiming to represent the man has surfaced to say that he had done nothing wrong by stealing the cap
Image credits: CollinRugg
The Daily Mail reported on August 30 on a lawyer by the name of Jakub Jedrzejak, rubbishing a purported apology of the executive while claiming that he has done nothing wrong.
“On the contrary,” the post rambled on, “they can be understood as an educational gesture and a form of teaching for a young person.”
“First of all, the cap was not of such value that one could speak of any ‘loss’,” the purported paralegal reasoned.
Image credits: CollinRugg
“It was an everyday item, which ultimately was handed over to the child. Thus, the child was not deprived of the item but received it.”
The post claims that it “set the rules of the game” and indicated that the man and his affiliates are not worried about the internet’s dissent
“For this reason, portraying the entire event in negative terms is not only incorrect but also unfair,” the law firm continued.
Perhaps the most arrogant statement in the missive was:
“Let your outrage ring out as much as it wants. It makes no difference to us.
“We set the rules of the game, because we have the means, the knowledge, and the position,” the Daily Mail reported on August 30.
Another news outlet has gone as far as claiming the hat snatcher is the CEO of a Polish paving company
Tellingly, the rep who rubbished the earlier apology as bogus has not done the same for this statement.
Another web outlet, Prime Timer, touting itself as a "resource for television news," has since claimed the culprit is Piotr Szczerek, CEO of the polish paving company Drogbruk.
It further noted Szczerek had turned off comments on his social media accounts. The outlet did not specify how it arrived at this conclusion.
The internet is baying for blood
Although the little boy ultimately received his cap, the internet seems to see the issue as all but remedied.
Image credits: kamilmajchrzakk
“This guy is worse than a CEO having an affair at a concert… this guy should have the same internet fame and consequences,” wrote one.
“He deserves international recognition for his shameful behavior. Do we know who this guy is?” asked another.
Image credits: kamilmajchrzakk
Image credits: kamilmajchrzakk
Amid all the online outrage and precation, some seemed to read into the fact that the cap-swiper handed a marker to the boy and wondered if they weren’t related.
“I’m thinking the story's going to work out that he's the DAD of the kid,” wrote one person entertaining the idea. “Maybe we don't crucify the guy until we get the whole story.”
Some wish Coldplay was there to make it go viral
