Trial hopefuls muster little to impress selectors
LOCAL athletes last night turned out in force at the Hongkong Amateur Athletic Association Selection Trials Meeting at Wan Chai Sports Ground.
The competitors were vying for places in a team from the territory scheduled to take part in a meeting at Guangzhou next month.
But apart from a sparse sprinkling of good performances, most athletes did not appear sharp enough to impress the selectors.
Burly thrower Kevin Baker of Watson's Athletics Club was a notable exception, however. He staked a selection claim with a good double when he won the shot with a heave of 12.85 metres, followed by a 55.72 metres javelin throw.
In the past Baker has always performed well in Guangzhou where he has thrown well over 60 metres in the javelin event.
Ladies Road Runners Club's Lucy Ramwell proved yet again that she is by far Hongkong's best women's distance runner with an easy win over Watson's Chiu Pik-kwan in the women's 3,000 metres, clocking nine minutes 52.39 seconds.
In the men's 5,000 metres, Watson's top junior Simon Parsons turned on the pace two laps from the finish to clock 16:03.98 in scoring a runaway win over his two main challengers Ho Wing-fai of Road Runners AC and Happy Valley's triathlete Wu Ka-fai.
Citizens Athletic Association's (TCAA) Lai Tung-sing was the pick of the men sprinters clocking a modest 22.77 for a 200 metres win while woman hurdler Cheung Suet-yee, also of TCAA, won the women's 100 metres in 12.60.
In field events Chang Yiu-ho turned in the year's best high jump performance to date from a local athlete.
Competing for Yuen Long District Sports Club Chang cleared the bar at 2.08 metres to show why he is in the Watson's Water-Hongkong Sports Institute Elite Programme.
