The Hong Kong adidas Streetball Challenge champions are ready to pit their skills against elite young basketball players from the region at the 2004 Asian finals in Seoul this weekend.
The boys' under-19 winners - So Yi-chun, Wong Chun-wai, Lo Yi-ting and Tse Man-chun - and girls' under-19 champions - Kwong Shuk-ching, Lau cho-yi, Hung Yat-na and Wong Ki-ki - flew to South Korea yesterday for the two-day tournament at Lotte World Amusement Park in the capital city.
The Hong Kong boys have won the regional championship three times over the past four years since it was launched in Taipei in 1999. The event was cancelled last year due to the Sars outbreak.
Up against strong teams from mainland China, South Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand, the Hong Kong squads have set their sights on advancing to the semi-finals.
'Other teams should be really strong, with tall players in their lineups,' said centre Wong Chun-wai, himself a towering figure at 1.94 metres.
'We'll play our style. We should have certain advantages with our speedy play and our never-say-die spirit.'