Wang Xinyue, has a point to prove when she dons the Hong Kong colours as a speed skater at the Asian Short Track Championships in Japan in March. 'I want to be the Asian champion,' the 22-year-old said. 'I want everyone to know I am the best in the region after being deprived of the opportunity to take part in the Winter Olympics.' Wang was forced to surrender her Olympic berth to teammate Han Yueshuang after failing to meet the residency requirements for obtaining a Hong Kong passport. 'It was heart breaking when I was told I could not take part in the Vancouver Games. The Olympics is the biggest competition of all and you never know if you will have that chance again,' said Wang, who came to Hong Kong from Harbin in Heilongjiang province in 2007 under the government's admission scheme for mainland talents and professionals. 'I can only wish Han well in Vancouver and at the same time I will continue my training in China to build up for the Asian Championships.' Wang is forced to travel between Hong Kong and Harbin, where she does all her training, because there is no Olympic-standard training venue here. 'I was a bit surprised when I found there was no proper ice rink for training,' she said. 'But training in Harbin also helps as I do not have to adapt to a new environment and can continue to do what I have been doing since I was a child.' Wang joined the China youth team in 2003 and won gold medals in the 500m, 1,000m and 3,000m at the following year's National Youth Championships. Despite her age, she has already overtaken Han, 27, as the Hong Kong number one and ranks as one of the best skaters in Asia. At the 2007 Asian Championships, she finished second in the 500m and third in both the 1,000m and 1,500m and achieved much better results than Han in the two-round qualifiers for the Vancouver Games. 'My biggest hope is to become an Olympic champion, but I will have to wait for at least four years and prove my ability first at the Asian Championships,' she said. China's Wang Meng, who won three medals at the 2006 Turin Games - a gold in the 500m, silver in the 1,000m and bronze in the 1,500m - is also from Harbin and trained with Hong Kong's Wang for a year. 'I learnt a lot from her,' Wang said. 'China are very strong in short-track speed skating and have very good medal chances in Vancouver.'
