To sprinters, every 0.01second matters. Ng Ka-fung is well aware of this, after his first year of full-time professional training. With that rule in mind, the 19-year-old and three other, more experienced 100m runners hope to step up and carry Hong Kong athletics to a new level on the Olympic stage.
Ng started running in Primary Four and continued through C&MA Sun Kei Secondary School and Chong Gene Hang College. Before graduating from Form Five, he helped Chong Gene Hang win three gold medals in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay at the Inter-School Athletics Championship two years ago.
He ended last year as the city's No 1 junior 100m runner, an achievement he credits in part to support from his family.
'They didn't have any objection when I told them I would like to turn pro last year,' Ng says.
But the path to becoming a professional sprinter was filled with hurdles. In 2010, Ng suffered injuries to both his legs, something he now sees as a turning point in his development.
'I admit that I was not giving my best during training,' he says. 'My coach warned me to not treat my warm-up exercises as a trivial part of my routine, but I didn't pay attention.'
The consequences were costly. He finished a disappointing fifth in the Asian Junior Athletics Championships and failed to qualify for the World Junior Championships in Athletics, as well as the Asian Games.
