HONG KONG: Twelve-year-old Hong Kong fencing novice Lloyd had a new role model at the weekend – “queen of the sword” Vivian Kong Man-wai, who rallied from a 7-1 deficit in the women’s corduroy final to win Olympic gold in Paris.
“I woke up to the pleasant surprise of Vivian Kong (victory),” Lloyd told AFP on Monday at a fencing school in Central District, Hong Kong’s business heart.
The 30-year-old from Kong became only the third Hong Kong athlete in history to wear a gold medal on Saturday when she defeated France’s Auriane Mallo-Breton in front of a rabid partisan crowd at the Paris Games.
She won 13-12 in the most thrilling fashion, a sudden-death, final point that clinched victory in a nail-biting contest after it was tied 12-12 when the clock ran out.
“Very inspiring. It was just very nice to see the spirit she had,” Lloyd said before beginning his fencing lesson.
“She didn’t give up, she still had to climb up … she still went for the challenge and managed to win the gold medal,” he said.
“I was very happy for Hong Kong.
Later on Monday in Paris, fellow fencer Edgar Cheung took home the gold medal in the men’s final – successfully defending the title he won at the Tokyo Games three years ago.
Kong joined Cheung and windsurfer Lee Lai-shan at Atlanta 1996 as Hong Kong’s only Olympic winners.
A graduate of Stanford University in the United States, Kong has battled back from two torn cruciate ligaments over the years, one in each knee, to become world No. 1 and achieve Olympic glory.
In a tearful post-match interview at the Grand Palais – the 124-year-old exhibition hall Paris has converted into an Olympic venue – Kong said fencing “in such a beautiful palace was one of my dreams”.
“I didn’t want to lose so badly,” she said of fighting back from a six-point deficit.
“I didn’t want to give up without showing the spirit of Hong Kong in my fight.
The impact of Kong’s victory was immediate, said Lau Kwok-kin, a former Olympian who now teaches fencing, who works at the school where Lloyd trains a class of about six youngsters with only one girl.
Lau said they have received more calls from parents of young girls since Kong’s victory.
“Vivian Kong is an athlete and maybe that made some parents see the possibility of girls winning medals at the Olympics,” said Lau, 47.
Lau was the first fencer to represent the city at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, and the 47-year-old attributed Congo’s success to the systematic training provided by the Hong Kong Sports Institute.
The government-funded body also provides athletes with better financial support than in the past.
“Back then, we didn’t have much time to train, and we often did it after class or at work when we were tired,” Lau said.
“But being an athlete is a full-time job now.
Lau added that the training plan for an elite athlete now covers “everything from retreat, practice, competition, technique and physical conditioning”.
“It’s a much more professional model than what we had before – that’s why the performance is better now.”
Lau said the city could discover more talent if “satellite training bases” outside the Hong Kong Sports Institute could be set up around the city and if parents could provide more support.
Lloyd, who has attended lessons three times a week since taking up the sport a year ago, said he would “definitely” like to fence more, but school work takes up a lot of his time. “I still have fencing very high in my priorities… (but) I may have to slow down on how much fencing I can do in a week because of tests and preparation studies,” he said.
