Chan Yuk-man leads new wave of medal-hungry Hong Kong rowers
The 18-year-old Asian junior champion has his eyes on bigger things
The present and the future are about to collide with Hong Kong awash in rowing medals.
Led by gold medallist Lok Kwan-hoi, Hong Kong's senior rowers won five medals at the Asian Games in Incheon.
But before that, Chris Chan Yuk-man surprised all by being crowned Asian junior champion as Hong Kong swept five medals in Taiwan.
He has shown obvious improvement and made a bigger leap than others this year. That is why we entered him in the singles race, which is very demanding
In four years, 18-year-old Chan has come from nowhere to lead a new wave of Hong Kong rowing talent, showing what determination can achieve by winning the men's single sculls event.
He is already being earmarked as a medal-winning prospect at the next Asian Games in Jakarta in 2018 by Hong Kong team coach Jack Lam Wing-sang.
"He may not show it in training, but in a race his determination is beyond our expectations," said Lam. "He has shown obvious improvement and made a bigger leap than others this year. That is why we entered him in the singles race, which is very demanding. To excel in this event, he has to show stability, and be physically and mentally fit.
"We haven't had good results in recent years. Teams like Iran, Iraq and India have gained strength, while athletes from western Asian countries like Kazakhstan have advantages in physique. We face very keen competition."