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Organised by the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI), the Sports for Hope Foundation (SFHF) Outstanding Junior Athlete Awards (OJAA) presentation ceremony for the 1^st quarter of 2014 was held today at the HKSI to pay tribute to 11 junior athletes who have performed outstandingly in the quarter.

Officiating guests were Dr Trisha Leahy, Chief Executive of the HKSI; Mr Ronnie Wong JP, Hon. Deputy Secretary General of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF&OC); Mr Chu Hoi-kun, Chairman of the Hong Kong Sports Press Association (HKSPA) and Miss Marie-Christine Lee, founder of the SFHF.

The recipients this quarter include Lee Cheuk-yiu and Ng Tsz-yau (badminton), Cheung Ka-long and Ho Sze-hou (fencing), Doo Hoi-kem and Hung Ka-tak (table tennis), Chan Tsz-kit and Choi Wing-chi (windsurfing), Zhuang Jiahong and Lau Chi-lung (wushu), and Tsang Kung-yuen (athletics – Hong Kong Sports Association for the Mentally Handicapped, HKSAM).

Badminton player Lee Cheuk-yiu made a stunning achievement by winning a bronze medal in the men’s singles at the Badminton Asian Youth (U19) Championships 2014. He eliminated the Indonesian player at the semi-final, who ranked world number two among the world juniors. Lee said, “The award is undoubtedly a driving force to all athletes and I am very grateful to be one of the awardees. I will focus more on the training and set my goal to get into the World’s Top 10.” Fifteen-year-old player Ng Tsz-yau shared the stage by defeating 43 pairs with her partner in the mixed doubles at the Yonex Dutch Junior International.

The ninth-time awardees, table tennis player Doo Hoi-kem, impressed the judges again by returning home with a gold and a bronze medal at the 2013 ITTF Global Junior Circuit Finals and the GAC Group 2014 ITTF World Tour, Qatar Open (Super) respectively. She also gained the qualification to participate in the 2014 Youth Olympics Games (YOG). Doo felt thankful for the award saying, “I am very honoured to be recognised by the OJAA again. It is my tenth time being an awardee and it means a lot to me. I will do better and hopefully I can step on this stage again before I turn 19.”

The up-and-coming fencer Cheung Ka-long was awarded for his excellent results at the Asian Junior & Cadet Fencing Championships, where he captured two gold medals in the men’s foil individual cadet and junior categories. “The Championships held in Amman was an unforgettable experience to me. It was a tight match and I finally had a narrow win over my opponent. This is also my last year eligible for the junior category, winning the championship is a perfect ending.” Cheung said.

Windsurfer Chan Tsz-kit gained his OJAA title for the first time in recognition of his achievement at the 2014 Asian Windsurfing Championships. Chan won the first place in the Techno Youth Boys category. He extended his gratitude to the support of the SFHF, “I would like to thank SFHF for their huge support and encouragement. This award is a great motivation for me to perform better in the future.” Chan’s teammate Choi Wing-chi bagged a silver medal in Techno Youth Girls event at the same competition and was selected as one of the awardees. Same as Chan, She admires “Windsurfing Queen” Lee Lai-shan a lot, “Shan Shan had made brilliant achievements in windsurfing, and she took every single training and competition seriously. These are what we should learn from her.” Choi thanked SFHF, coaches, teammates and family for their encouragement and support. Her short-term target is to pursue top three at the 2014 YOG.

Wushu athlete Lau Chi-lung won the OJAA title by winning in the boy’s B group nanquan and boy’s B group nangun at the 5th World Junior Wushu Championships. His teammate Zhuang Jiahong shared the limelight by obtaining excellent results at the same competition, snatching two gold medals in boy’s A group taijiquan and boy’s A group taijijian.

Track and field athlete with intellectual disabilities Tsang Kung-yuen received the award by demonstrating teamwork with his teammates and won a gold medal in the men’s 4x200m relay at 2014 INAS World Indoor Athletics Championships.

In addition, Lau Shiu-yue (swimming) and Yu Sze-ching (gymnastics) were awarded Certificate of Merit for this quarter. Lau set a new Hong Kong record in men’s 50m backstroke at the Age Group Short Course Swimming Championships 2014. He has won altogether six gold medals at the same competition.

Organised by the HKSI and sponsored by the Sports for Hope Foundation since 2012, with support from the SF&OC and the HKSPA, the OJAA recognises 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.

Awardees’ Achievements in the 1^st Quarter (PDF)