Jeffrey Lum Ching-tat knows he has a talent for swimming. Now he wants to take it to the next level and that means selling himself to a university in the United States.
The 17-year-old, who recently smashed three Hong Kong records - the 50m and 100m freestyle and 4x100m freestyle relay, plans to follow in the footsteps of fellow Hong Kong team members Sherry Tsai Hiu-wai and Hannah Wilson and move to Berkeley, California, next summer after finishing secondary school.
'My plan is to find a community college in Berkeley to see if I can catch the eye of the University of California in Berkeley because of my sporting performance,' Lum said. 'I hope to secure a sport scholarship from the university so I can train with some of the world's best swimmers, to help improve my standard.
'I have already spoken to a number of people regarding my plans and the responses are quite positive. My family also supports me.'
Lum said his decision was not only due to the recent success of Wilson at the World University Games in Belgrade, where she won two gold medals, but his strong desire to compete with the world's best.
'If you have found your talent in sport, you don't want to miss it,' the form five student at Diocesan Boys' School said. 'Although there is no guarantee of success by training in the US, you certainly have a greater exposure to top-class swimming, which helps you take it to another level.
