Wushu contingent quest for medal hauls in Hong Kong

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SARAWAK’S BEST: Lau (sixth right) hands over the flag to Yung (third right) who receives on behalf of the state wushu exponents bound for the 10th Hong Kong Wushu International Championship.

SIBU: The Sibu Martial Art (Quan Shu) Association is sending 15 exponents to compete in the 10th Hong Kong Wushu International Championship with the quest of winning more medals at the meet held from Feb 24-28 at the Asia World-Expo Centre, Hong Kong.

“Our primary target is to better our performance and increase last year’s gold medal tally of 28. We are expecting a tough fight from exponents from Hong Kong and Macau. They have former-internationals in their teams but we would not be intimidated and ready to give them a run for their money,” Coach Gilbert Wong told The Borneo Post after a symbolic handing over of flag ceremony from the honorary team leader Temenggong Vincent Lau Lee Ming.

For the trip to Hong Kong, the team is led by Yung Dak Looh and assisted by coaches Gilbert and Wong Yik Tze. Gilbert said they did not wish to set specific target to avoid putting unnecessary pressure on the team members.

“We do expect our team members to grab a gold medal each in this prestigious tournament which has attracted more than 10,000 participants this year. Our team would be taking part in 63 games with each member taking part in at least three games with six at the most. 10-year-old Nicholas Kho is the youngest member of the contingent,” he revealed.

“Team members train for about three hours a day from 7pm till 10pm to improve their skills and confidence. I always advocate consistent training to prepare them mentally and physically for the ‘big’ day. This would be more effective than increasing the training hours when there is a tournament around the corner,” informed Yung. The team currently conduct training at the rooftop of the association’s premises and for this reason Yung hoped that there would be proper and conducive centre for them to train in future.

“When it rained, we have to abort our training session. We are in need of a better place to conduct our training and provide more conducive environment for our members,” Yung said.

Meanwhile, in giving encouragement Lau urged members of the contingent to maintain high standard of discipline and commitment. “This is an international exposure which will also be a platform for you to learn and upgrade your skills from more skilful exponents.Give your best to bring glory to the state and country,” Lau said.

Last year, The Sibu Martial Art team bagged 28 gold, 20 silver, and two bronze medals.

The contingent to this year’s championship comprise Lau Kiing Fuu, Collin Shieu, Frankie Hii, Francis Wong, Kevin Wong, Kelvin Hii, George Ting, Nicholas Kho, Angela Lim, Rachel Hii, Chia Hui Ming, April Ting, Bernard Tham and Wong Sie Sing.