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At a prize presentation for the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI) Outstanding Junior Athlete Awards (OJAA) held at the Cornwall Street Squash & Table Tennis Centre, Kowloon Tong today (Monday), track & field athletes Fung Wai-yee and Lai Chun-ho, cyclist Choi Ki-ho, squash players Au Chun-ming and Ho Ka-po and tennis player Yang Zijun were named recipients of the Award for the second quarter of 2008. Not counting the awardees from the team event, this is also the quarter in which the highest no. of athletes were awarded the title in individual events, reflecting the elevating performance of Hong Kong junior athletes.

Fung Wai-yee earned his first outstanding junior athlete title with excellent performance by winning four gold medals in the high jump during April and June, and broke not only the Hong Kong junior record, but also the Hong Kong record three times within the period. The 14-year-old athlete won a gold medal at the 13^th Asian Junior Athletics Championships with an excellent record-breaking performance of 1.78M. Fung admires the strong will of Chinese "diving queen" Guo Jingjing and regards Guo as her role model.

Another awardee was the Hong Kong record holder of men's 100M Lai Chun-ho. Lai won a silver and a bronze medal at the Asian Grand Prix 2008 held respectively in Korat and Hanoi, and a gold medal at the 13^th Asian Junior Athletes Championships. Being the Hong Kong record holder of men's 100M, Lai was granted a wild card by the International Olympic Committee to compete in the Beijing Olympics. Lai first played the sport when he was in Form 3 and was fond of it instantly. Lai hopes he can represent Hong Kong to get medals at the next World University Games.

Cyclist Choi Ki-ho won a silver medal in the individual road race among 34 participants at the 15^th Asian Junior Cycling Championships held in Japan in April. 17-year-old Choi was selected through the "Searching for New Sport Stars?programme of the HKSI in 2003 and became a member of Hong Kong squad in October 2004. Currently a fifth-former, Choi loves the sport so much that he plans to accept full-time training in the future so as to attain better achievement.

Currently ranked Hong Kong's No. 1 in boys' under 19 category and girls?under 15 group, squash players Au Chun-ming and Ho Ka-po grabbed a gold and a silver medal respectively at the Asian Junior Individual Squash Championships in June. Now studying at the Jockey Club Ti-I College, Au started playing squash at 11 and became a member of Hong Kong squad at the age of 14. " I am extremely happy to be awarded the title as this is a proof of my ability. I must thank the support from my family and my coach," said Au, who is the brother of Au Wing-chi, one of the local top female squash players and the sixth-time winner of the same Award.

Being a member of the Hong Kong squad for less then a year, 13-year-old Ho Ka-po was very happy to be named the winner of the Award, and expressed appreciation to the HKSI for organising the Awards scheme which is a confidence booster to young athletes. " I hope to attain the same achievement of Chiu Wing-yin, Hong Kong No. 1 female squash player. Of course, I want to win the Award again and get fabulous results in the Major Games in the future," said Ho with a big grin on her face.

18-year-old Yang Jijun started playing tennis at a very young age of even, and became a full-time tennis player at 14. "It is not an easy path to be a full-time athlete," said Yang. She recalled once that she had to play three sets to win the game under the scorching sun which measured up to 40°C. "I am lucky that there are so many supportive people around me and I hope to play at the Wimbledon in the near future." Yang added.

Each recipient received a cash prize of HK$2,500, sports gears voucher worth HK$2,500 and a certificate at the presentation. In addition, fencers Cheung Sik-lui and Lam Hin-wai as well as gymnast Shek Wai-hung were each presented a certificate of merit to recognise their outstanding performance.

Presented by the HKSI with the support from the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China and the Hong Kong Sports Press Association, the Awards scheme aims to recognise the achievement of local junior athletes under the age of 19 on a quarterly basis.