The 18th Asian Games will be held in Jakarta, Indonesia from August 18 to September 2 this year. The Technical Committee for Qualified Representatives Selection of the Macao SAR, having analyzed and evaluated the competition events at the beginning of this year, decided to participate in 16 competitive events in the Asian Games, which include aquatics (swimming / diving / artistic swimming), track and field, badminton, bowling, boxing, canoe (still water), cycling (road / track), fencing, golf, judo, karate, squash, table tennis, taekwondo, triathlon, and wushu. Striving to achieve brilliant results in all these events, they are currently in the stage of final preparation. All the athletes are ready for the coming Asian Games.
Table Tennis Team's Final Preparation
To prepare for the Asian Games, the Macao Table Tennis Association started selecting athletes at the beginning of this year based on the results of the Macao Senior Singles Competition held in January and the senior internal competition held from February to May. Eventually 5 male and 5 female athletes were selected for the composition of the team. The list of the athletes are as follows: Cheong Chi Cheng, Cheong Chi Chon, Chio Chi Hong, Mak Tin Ian, Wong Chon, Cheong Cheng I, Chong Weng I, Wong Choi Chi, Tam Sut Fei and U Sio Mei.
Among the athletes who will compete in the Asian Games this year the average age of the male athletes is 19 while that of the female athletes is 27. To prepare for the Asian Games, the team will be engaging in intense training six times a week. In mid-July, Henan Province will send a team to visit Macao for an exchange and to compete with the team. In early August, the team will visit Zhongshan Sports Center Stadium to engage in closed training which will last 7 days, as the final preparation for the Asian Games. It is hoped that they can gain brilliant results in the Asian Games and win honour for Macao.
Athletics Team Fight for New Record
The athletics team will dispatch 4 athletes to participate in the Asian Games which include sprint contestants Loi Im Lan and Lai Hou Tat, and track and field contestants Wong Ka Chun and Wong Chi Wai. All the four athletes have set Macao records and are receiving the most intensive training. The athletics team hope that the contestants will achieve greater results for the Macao Athletics Team in the Asian Games.
Loi Im Lan, who is known for the title “Speedy Loi”, has become the focus in the field during the recent years. Last year she set new Macao records in both women's 100 meters and 200 meters with the results 11'81" and 24'82" respectively, and became the fastest sprinter in Hong Kong and Macao in the 100 meters event. This year, although she is studying in university in mainland, she has become well prepared for competitions rather rapidly. In May, she competed in the Chinese Taipei Athletics Open and achieved a result of less than 12 seconds which was very close to the best result she could achieve. In the Asian Games this year, Loi Im Lan not only aims to break new Macao records in these two events, but she will also strive to break into the second round of the race.
Over the past two years, Lai Hou Tat, who is a good hurdle athlete of the new generation, turned up in the National Games, and the Asian Indoor & Martial Arts Games consecutively. He also set a new Macao record in the 60 meters hurdle event in the Asian Indoor & Martial Arts Games. In this Asian Games he will challenge the “King of Hurdle” Iong Kim Fai, who had set a record of 14'23" in the Incheon Asian Games last year. Both Wong Ka Chun and Wong Chi Wai, who defended the records in the long-jump and high-jump event, will fight to set new records as well.
In order to further improve their condition, all the four athletes will go to Shangdong Province, Taiwan Province and Dalian consecutively for final preparations according to the training requirements. They will strive to make a breakthrough and win honor for Macao with brilliant results.
The Badminton Team improve their condition through special training
Over the recent years, the Macao badminton team have been emphasizing the cultivation of teenage players. Good results have been seen currently in the initial stage. Various indicators such as the results in local competitions, the results in outbound competitions, and the performance during the team training have been established. Eventually, 2 male and 2 female athletes have been selected to compete in the Asian Games held in Indonesia this year.
The badminton team will participate in all the five events where they will be dispatching Pui Pang Fong, aged 18, to compete in the men's single event. He has come to the forefront during his years in secondary school as he won the champion in the inter-school competition. Three years ago he became the youngest Macao champion in the single category in history. Apart from participating in the single event, Pui Pang Fong will compete in the men's double event partnering with Che Pui Ngai. As for the women's events, Ng Weng Chi will primarily compete in the women's single. Kong Hok Ian will focus on the double events partnering with Ng Weng Chi and Che Pui Ngai in the women's double and mixed double respectively.
To prepare for the Asian Games, the Badminton Federation of Macau organized a series of team training and warm-up competitions including Mongolia International Junior Series in June. They also went to the mainland for special training in July and August in order to improve their condition. Coach Lam Un Cheong stated, “In the Asian Games, which is of high standard, it seems unattainable to win a medal but it doesn't mean that we have no objectives. The athletes are making efforts in training seriously in the hopes that they can break into the top 16.”
The Judo Team Represented by the Youth
Over the recent years the Macao Judo Team have been emphasizing the youth events so that the young athletes can climb up to the higher level and a larger stage after accumulating experiences. The Judo Team will dispatch 1 male and 3 female contestants to participate in the Asian Games in Indonesia. The contestants include Lio Chon Hou, who won a gold medal in the JUA Cadets & Junior Macau 2015, Wong Ka Lei and Wong Chi Ieng, each of whom won a bronze medal in the 6th Asian Youth & the 13th Asian Junior Judo Championships in 2012, as well as Tang Lai Man, who performed excellently in the local competitions.
To prepare for the Asian Games, the Macao Judo Association arranged for two-staged training. The first phase began in early June and they visited the Kodokan Judo Institute in Japan to engage in team training for a month. They also participated in the training camp. The second phase will take place in July and August. Skilled judo athletes from reputable universities such as Kokushikan University and Nippon Sport Science University will be invited to Macao to train and make final arrangements for the team before they compete in the Asian Games.
Aiming at the Asian Games, the Macao Judo Association hopes that the athletes can improve their skills through competitions, show the results of their training, make a self-breakthrough, and endeavor to win honor for Macao.
The Fencing Team has a Clear Objective
The cultivation and the establishment of the echelon of the junior athletes in recent years have brought about positive results. In the coming Asian Games, the fencing team will not only send the “three best female fencers” Ho Ping I, Ho Ka U and Wong Lai Nga to compete in the women's foil team event, Hoi Man Kit, aged 17, very probably will also compete in the men's foil event to continue his excellent performance of becoming one of the best 16 fencers in the Asian U-23 Fencing Championships.
Ho Ping I, Ho Ka U and Wong Lai Nga, who were recommended in the outstanding athlete scheme with their result of being among the best eight in the women's foil team in the Incheon Asian Games, have rich experience in competitions. Last year, both Ho Ping I and Ho Ka U have achieved one win in the women's singles in the National Games. Although they failed to become among the top eight in the team competition, they performed better than they had done in the Asian Championships, which took place in the same year. The new star from the men's team, Hoi Man kit, competed in the Asian U-23 Fencing Championships last year, which was beyond his level, yet achieved the goal of becoming part of the best 16 unexpectedly. After that, he also won the 14th place in the Asian Junior and Cadet Fencing Championships. In order to prepare for the Asian Games, the fencing team invited Zhong Rui Ming, an experienced coach from Guangdong, to Macao to train the team members during the Easter festival. Before the Asian Games, they will also compete in the Asian Championships and go to Shanghai for group training, in an effort to achieve the goal of becoming the women's best eight in the foil team event and men's best 16 in the foil event in the Asian Games in Indonesia.
Taekwondo Female Team Aim to Win Medals
The Taekwondo team, which is all composed of female athletes, will compete in the Asian Games held in Indonesia. 2 senior members with substantial experiences, Lao Cheng and Fong Sio, will participate in the sparring event while 3 athletes Chim Cho Kuan, Wong Lei Lei, and Wong Chi Cheng will be sent to compete in the pumsae event. This female team is believed to be competitive and there is still a high chance that they will be awarded in Taekwondo this year. They primarily aim at the sparring event.
Some adjustments have been made to the rules in the Taekwondo events this year, as the 8 weight classes, which were applied in the last Asian Games, will be reduced to mere 5 this year. Although medals will only be awarded in the Pumsae event, Lao Cheng and Fong Sio are as determined to win medals as before. This year, it is the first time for the team to participate in the Pumsae event. The athletes have not yet acquired all the key techniques of the Pumsae routine. However, it is still very probable that the team will manage to rank high.
Currently, the sparring team have been engaging in intense training in Jiangsu Province. Fong Sio and Lao Cheng are in stable condition. The three athletes in the Pumsae team will visit Korea for team training in early July. It is hoped that all the teams can make a breakthrough as they are pursuing their goal.
Aquatics Teams Compete in Three Competitions
All the aquatics teams have been preparing for the Asian Games. In particular, the artistic swimming team have been modifying and making adjustments to the choreography for the team-free-routine and the double event in Macao after the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series (Beijing), which took place in April. In late July, they will visit Nanjing for closed training where physical strength training and the quality of individual techniques will be emphasized. They will also be familiarized with the choreography set for the team-free-route. Later, the artistic swimming team will return to Macao for final physical and mental preparations in order to compete in the Asian Games in their best condition.
The members of the swimming team are engaging in five-week intense training on plateau in Kunming. Wong Man Wai, who studies in the U.S. and Ou Pok Man, who studies in the U.K., have been engaging in systematic training even when they are abroad. Tam Chi Ian, sponsored by the Sports Bureau, will also go to the U.S. to participate in professional training in the U.S. which lasts for half a year. In order to let the team members become prepared for the competition as soon as possible, the team participated in the Malaysia Age Group Championship and Japan Open, and will join the Hong Kong Open to be held in August. It is hoped that the athletes can show their progress which they have made during the team training on plateau in the competitions.
The diving team will dispatch two male and three female athletes to participate in the eight events in the Asian Games this year. Among them, four members have been engaging in team training at Guangzhou Vocational and Technical College of Sport. Chui Sut Kuan has to train in Macao independently because of work, while she joins the team training in Guangzhou with her teammates at weekends. The members of the diving team share the goal to win the best individual result in the Asian Games.
New Members of Golf Team Compete in Asian Games
Macao Golf Team will dispatch 4 male and 2 female athletes to participate in the Asian Games to be held in Indonesia as a young lineup. In particular, all contestants such as Ao Ka Hou, Si Ngai, Hun Pui In, Hun Teng Teng and Kuan Ieong Sin are freshmen, except Sio Kit Iok, to compete in the Asian Games. Currently, all contestants are in the U.S. in final preparation for the golf single event and the team event in the Asian Games. They strive to illustrate their best performance in the Asian Games, which is at the professional level.
In recent years, the team has been succeeded by a group of young players. Members such as Si Ngai and Ao Ka Hou have been engaging in training and studies in IMG Golf Academy for many years. Last year, Si Ngai won the individual champion with a below-par score in the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation's (APGC) Junior Championship held in Hong Kong. After that, he was invited to participate in the Asia-Pacific Open Golf Championship Diamond Cup, where he achieved an exhilarating result. Siblings Hun Pui In and Hun Teng Teng also visit the U.S. to practice golf techniques and acquire knowledge of sports science from time to time, although they pursue their study in Macao.
In the Asian Games, faced with a number of Asian opponents at the professional level, the Macau Golf Association hopes that the players will do their utmost to get used to the obstructions on the green there. The experienced senior player Sio Kit Iok will also lead the young players so that they can gain some experiences in a large-scale multisport event and achieve brilliant results.
