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Seven up-and-coming young athletes—Ho Ka-po (squash), Doo Hoi-kem and Hung Ka-tak (table tennis), Cho Hyun-duk, Ip Cheng, Wong Chun-hun and Yeung Pak-long (tennis)—were awarded Outstanding Junior Athlete Awards (OJAA) for the 2^nd quarter of 2011 during the Prize Presentation Ceremony held today (3 August) at the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI). The OJAA is sponsored by ZESPRI^®, the world’s largest exporter of a premium brand of New Zealand kiwifruit. 

Officiating guests at today’s presentation included Dr Trisha Leahy, Chief Executive of the HKSI; Tony Yue, Vice President of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF&OC); and Kwok Sze-wah, committee member of the Hong Kong Sports Press Association (HKSPA). Henry Chan, Vice President of the Hong Kong Tennis Association; Tony Choi, Head Squash Coach of the HKSI and the mother of table tennis player Doo Hoi-kem were also invited to share how they support the young athletes. Chan encouraged young people that if they are really interested in the sport and have the potential in it, they should set their heart and strive for the best. On top of sports talents, coach Choi reiterated the importance of developing a tough and positive attitude towards lives, which is a basic element for a successful sportsman.

Just returned from the USA with a tight win over India to win 1 bronze medal in the women’s team event at the World Junior Women’s Championships last week, Ho Ka-po earned the title for the fourth time after winning 1 gold medal in the girls under 17 at the Asian Junior Squash Individual Championships 2011 in June. Ho is grateful to head coach Tony Choi, her teammates and parents for their continual support. “I’m happy to be awarded the title again, it is very encouraging and can definitely boost my confidence for future competitions. I hope to accumulate more experience and perform my best in the coming competitions,” Ho said.

Thirteen-year-old Hung Ka-tak is a hard working player. He excelled in a couple of Junior & Cadet Open – ITTF Junior Circuit competitions between April and May, wining 2 gold and 2 silver medals in South Africa, 2 gold and 1 bronze medal in France, and 2 gold medals in Spain. Having been trained for 5 years in the sport, Hung has a great ambition to be another local born world number one, same as his role model Rong Guotuan.
 
Hung’s teammate Doo Hoi-kem outshone other competitors at the Junior & Cadet Open – ITTF Junior Circuit competitions by winning 2 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze medal in France and 3 gold medals in Spain. This is the third time that Doo won the title. Doo is grateful to the support from coaches & family as well as the title sponsor ZESPRI^®. “The Award is a good recognition to young athletes to strive for the best in the sporting arena,” said Doo.  Hung and Doo are participating in the Hong Kong Junior & Cadet Open – ITTF Premium Junior Circuit this week. 

Four tennis players were awarded the title in this quarter, namely Cho Hyun-duk, Ip Cheng, Wong Chun-hun and Yeung Pak-long. Ip had many hard matches with competitors and won 1 bronze medal in the girls’ singles at the ITF Asian Closed Junior Tennis Championships. She started playing tennis at 3 years old and began her formal training in 2000. “I’m very happy to be honoured the Award. I will participate in the ITF Womens Circuit $10,000 Taipei next week and I hope I can enter the semi-finals,” Ip said. 

The boys tennis team clinched 1 bronze medal at the Junior Davis Cup by BNP Paribas Asia/ Oceania Final Qualifying competition. Currently having training in Korea, Cho was informed of the Award and said, “Thanks to the HKSI for presenting me this honourable Award. With this, I will be more confident to work harder in the future because it proves that nothing is impossible.” Wong echoed Cho’s comment and added, “I’m very excited to win the title. Thanks to ZESPRI^® in sponsoring the Awards which encourages me to aim higher in training and competitions.” Yeung is also happy that his effort is recognised and he treated the Award as a good morale booster to young athletes. He is joining an 8-week training programme in Spain during summer and participating in the ITF/ ATP Tennis Futures Tournaments.

Ng Ka-fung (athletics), Choi Uen-shan (squash) and Law Leong-tim (triathlon) were also awarded Certificates of Merit for this quarter.

The ZESPRI^® Outstanding Junior Athlete Awards is organised by the HKSI and sponsored by ZESPRI^®, with support from the SF&OC and the HKSPA. They recognise the achievements of outstanding local junior athletes under the age of 19 on a quarterly basis. Each recipient is presented with a cash prize of HK$2,500, a voucher worth HK$2,500 and a certificate.

List of Awardees (PDF)