Hong Kong squash veteran Max Lee calls it a day, will leave sport with ‘some regrets’
- Former Asian champion signs off with fourth-placed finish at Hong Kong event, calls not making world top 10 a failure
- Lee says body can no longer handle rigours of competitive game and hopes to move into coaching
Max Lee Ho-yin brought the curtain down on his career this weekend after finishing fourth at the Hong Kong Squash Championships, but he was doing so with some regrets.
The former Asian champion fought hard in the men’s third-place match against Wong Chi-him before losing three games to two, and said his body could no longer handle the rigours of top competition.
While Hong Kong crowned two new champions on Saturday – Lau Tsz-kwan defeating top seed Henry Leung Chi-hin 3-2 to win the men’s title, and Ho Tze-lok beating reigning regional champion Tong Tsz-wing 3-1 to win the women’s – it was Lee who stole the show.
“To be honest, I have some regrets in my career,” Lee, 34, said afterwards. “[Here], with the crowd farewell, my last match with applause was very memorable.”
Lee, who has two silver and three bronze medals from the past three Asian Games, had planned to retire after this year’s event in Hangzhou in September, but the Games’ postponement for a year because of China’s Covid-19 fears prompted him to stop playing now.
“It’s primarily due to hip joint degeneration that I’m unable to train properly,” he said. “My body can no longer handle the high intensity of training and competition – in fact, I walk like an old man in everyday life.