Long jumper Chan Ming-tai back in Olympic groove after winning Hong Kong title
- Leung’s 7.70m was his best result since he jumped 7.85m two years ago and it could be enough to send him to the Tokyo Games on a wild card
- High jump queen Cecilia Yeung also makes good progress in her second meet since recovering from a serious Achilles tendon injury
Long jumper Chan Ming-tai took a leap of faith in producing his best result in two years at the annual Hong Kong Championships on Sunday, while high jump queen Cecilia Yeung Man-wai continued her recovery from a career-threatening Achilles tendon injury with a solid performance.
On the second day of domestic track and field’s flagship event at Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground, Chan lifted the men’s title with a jump of 7.70 metres in his sixth and last jump when he needed to throw caution to the wind.
Yeung, who suffered the injury during a practice session at the Sports Institute two years ago, cleared 1.75 metres and came third in her event, which was won by Priscilla Cheung Ching-laam. All top four finishers cleared the same height but Cheung had the fewest misses on countback. Second place went to Chung Wai-yan.
“The last time I jumped 7.85 metres was at the 2019 Inter-city Championships in Hong Kong and I have been struggling to make that mark since,” said Chan, who made his Olympic debut in Rio in 2016, having set a Hong Kong record 8.12 metres before the Games. “I know I have the ability to jump that distance again [7.85 metres] as I have done it during training. But I must prove it in real competition.
“Today, I am happy to make that distance but more importantly I am able to apply many of the skills that I have practised during training.”
Long jumper ‘could have gone further’ but for Covid-19 rules
Hong Kong will have one wild card entry to the 2020 Tokyo Games if none of its men’s track and field athletes can achieve the qualifying standard. Chan’s result might be enough to send him to his second Olympics.
“I prefer not to talk about the Olympic Games at this stage because there are still many unknowns – even if the Olympics goes ahead. All I want is to have more regular competitions despite the pandemic so that the athletes can gradually get back to their standard,” said the 26-year-old. “There also will be the China National Games in September and we need competitions to build up to it.”
Yeung has also set her sights on the China National Games as her first major event after recovering from her injury. She was fifth at the last Games in Tianjin four years ago when she cleared 1.84 metres, the same height as the bronze medal winner who had fewer misses.
High jumper Yeung returns after 20-month injury absence
“This is only my second event after the injury and I only used a five-step approach to clear the bar,” said Yeung. “My personal best is 1.76 metres by using five steps, so it’s not too bad. I will use a seven-step approach in the next competition later this month and hopefully I can achieve a better result before I can go back to full approach.”
Yeung said she put in plenty of hard work and effort during her rehabilitation to help her make a successful comeback. “I spent a lot of effort on improving my skills and techniques and weight training during this period so that I don’t waste too much time,” she said.
In the men’s pole vault, Cheung Pui-yin shattered his own Hong Kong record by clearing 4.80 metres. His previous best was 4.45 metres set two years ago.
