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Success may sometimes be put down to luck, but basketball player Leung Kwok-shing believes in working hard to reap his rewards.

  The 20-year-old made his name in the 1996-97 Inter-district Basketball Championship in New Territories and Hong Kong Inter-school Basketball Marathon '97.

  He was also selected as the Most Valuable Player.

  While most basketballers his age only watch the slam dunk feats of NBA players on television, the seventh-former at Lutheran Middle College has broken into the Hong Kong Basketball Division I League Fujian team.

  He is also a Hong Kong youth team member and in the SAR team for the China National Games.

 But it does not come easy, Kwok-shing said.

  'Behind the dazzling performances is a series of harsh and intensive training exercises, and I definitely have to listen to my coach's instructions,' he said.

  The high-powered sportsman took to basketball full-throttle in Primary Six.

  He practises twice a week with the Hong Kong team and also does fitness training.

 'The best way to improve your basketball skills is to compare yourself to good players, or you can watch their performance and learn their shooting and passing techniques.'   Kwok-shing said he still had a long way to go before he reached the top.

  'I always tell myself not to be too proud of the successes I've made.

  'You can't get too complacent or you will never outstrip your rivals.'   To prepare for the Inter-school Basketball Marathon at the end of this month, and improve his three-point score for the Division I League Competition, Kwok-shing insisted on practising his game even while he was swotting for his A-Level examinations.

 'There's no fast ticket to success in sports. It combines your ability and how much effort you put in.'   Like the legendary Michael Jordan and veteran player Ng Chu-yip, Kwok-shing excels at shooting three-pointers.

  'I love the feeling of shooting hoops, scoring three-pointers and slam-dunking amid the yells and cheers of encouragement on the basketball court.

  'It makes me feel like a hero - especially shooting those three-pointers.

  'There is no one-man band in basketball. It is a game of co- operation with the rest of your team,' he said.

 The student from Yuen Long is waiting for his A-level results, which will be released next month.



Ace player scores by hard work