Timothy Ho Chu-ting
At just 17 years old, Timothy Ho Chu-ting is Asia’s fastest rope skipper and even holds a Guinness World Record with his fellow teammates for jumping the most skips over a single rope in three minutes. Ho talks to Jacqueline Garwood about his passion for jumping rope and his future aspirations.
HK Magazine: How does it feel to be named Hong Kong’s top rope skipper at such a young age?
Timothy Ho Chu-ting: I was extremely happy when I realized we broke a Guinness World Record. I mean, our original goal was to reach 460 skips, because the record held back then was 461. So we started with 75 jumps in 30 seconds and went on from there. A few days before the event, the team managed to reach 488 skips, which was the most we’ve ever done, so we set a new goal of at least 480. We never thought we’d be able to jump a record-breaking 501 skips though. I remember a lot of screaming! I was so happy that I didn’t even notice if I was tired or not from all that jumping.
HK: How long have you been skipping rope for? How did you get started?
TH: I’ve been skipping rope for nine years. I started when I was in Primary Two. I used to borrow the skipping ropes at school—my teacher said I wasn’t that bad so I joined the rope skipping team at school. To be honest, I initially started just to lose weight.
HK: Many students stop jumping rope after primary school. What made you stick to it?
TH: I joined the Hong Kong rope skipping team when I was in Primary Five. Since then, jumping rope hasn’t been just an activity but part of my life.
HK: How is skipping different from other sports?
TH: For basketball, you need a court and a hoop. For football, you need a field and goalposts. But skipping, however, can be done wherever you want. You can even do it at home. There are no boundaries.
HK: Are there many different ways of skipping rope?
TH: There are a lot of different styles. You can jump rope alone, with a friend or with a group of people. I personally enjoy jumping rope with my team, who are all really good friends of mine. By doing so, I get to learn a lot more.
HK: How often do you train? Is training very difficult?
TH: I currently train around three to four times a week. Of course it’s difficult and tiring, but we need to do it, especially if we want to win more competitions and break more records.
HK: How do you juggle school and practice?
TH: Jumping rope doesn’t really get in the way of my education. I’m in Form Five now and I’ll be taking the public exams next year, so I might not be practicing as much then. Maybe just once or twice a week.
HK: Tell us about your first competition.
TH: My first competition was in 2007 when I participated in the 4th Asian Rope Skipping Championships, which were held in India. I came first overall for the aged-14-and-below male group. I couldn’t believe that I’d win something in my first competition. Yeah, that was unbelievable.
