Athletes go from strength to strength
CUHK athletes have yielded outstanding achievements again in the sports competitions of the University Sports Federation of Hong Kong (USFHK) held in in March 2023. Director of CUHK’s Physical Education Unit (PEU) Dr Elean Leung says: “We are very proud of our student athletes’ brilliant performance. They deserve the recognition.” She admired the athletes’ commitment and dedication to attending regular training despite the limitation in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The women’s and men’s dragon boat teams rowed to championship and third runner-up titles in the dragon boat competition co-organised by USFHK and the Hong Kong China Dragon Boat Association on 4 March. The dragon boat team was awarded overall first runner-up.
On 12 March, the women’s and men’s karate teams shined in the USFHK karatedo competition and swept the championship and first runner-up titles respectively. With their excellent performance, the CUHK team has clinched the overall championship. “This is the best result our team has ever attained. We’re grateful to PEU, coaches, all team members, and all who have supported us throughout this journey,” says the captain of the men’s team Felix Cheung Yutai (LLB/Year 2).
“Winning the overall championship is not the end of the story. We will train even harder and strive for the best next year!” says the captain of women’s team Lilian Yuen Hiu-wai (Translation/Year 2).
Our athletes also excel in taekwondo. On 19 March, the women’s and men’s taekwondo teams swept the championship and second runner-up titles, and won the overall first runner-up in the USFHK competition. This was the best result that the taekwondo team has ever attained in the USFHK fixtures. “During the competition, we encouraged and supported each other. Everyone went all out, and we achieved a superb and satisfied result in the competition,” says the captain of men’s taekwondo team, Chan Long-hei (Recreation and Leisure Management of CUSCS/Year 2).
“It is a valuable experience to participate in the competition with my teammate, especially it is my first competition after my little finger fracture. I’m glad to have my coaches and teammates’ support and encouragement,” says Ho Tsoi-ying (Social Work/Year 3), champion of women’s fly weight.
Our men’s basketball team was awarded the second runner-up title in the USFHK basketball competition on 19 March. “Gratitude also goes to the on-field professional support from the CUHK Sports Medicine Team. The in-person encouragement from the University Dean of Students was much appreciated,” says Dr Leung.
CUHK cross country women’s and men’s teams got the Grand Slam result in the USFHK Cross Country Race on 26 March. In addition to the women’s, men’s and their overall championships, Wong Cheuk-ning (Hong Kong records holder at under-20 level of 10,000m and half-marathon) won the individual championship and Lam Yee-ching was awarded individual 2nd runner-up. When asked about her feeling about the honour, Wong Cheuk-ning (PESH/Year 4) quoted Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “It’s the not the destination, it’s the journey”.
“It is a great honor to witness that the CUHK cross-country men’s and women’s teams both got the champions. In this competition, the difficulty of the route, unstable weather, and the ability of the opponents all brought challenges to the CUHK athletes. Here, I would like to thank all the team members for their dedication, and hope that we will continue to maintain the standard and win glory for CUHK,” says the captain of men’s team Cheung Sui-him (PESH/Year 3).
Photos courtesy of CUHK’s Physical Education Unit
