The enemy within keeps Fong Ying on her toes

By LIM TEIK HUAT

PETALING JAYA: Wushu exponent Chai Fong Ying (pic) not only has to watch out for the foreign challengers but she also has to look out for the enemy within in her defence of the SEA Games title in Laos.

Fong Ying returned home empty-handed from her third world championship campaign in Toronto last month.

The 23-year-old not only failed to retain the women’s taijiquan title but she suffered the humiliation of being placed outside the top 10 in the event won by Indonesian Lindswell. Fellow Malaysian Ng Shin Yii just missed out on the bronze medal by 0.1 point in fourth place.

However, Shin Yii was not to be denied a medal, taking the silver in the taijijian (taiji sword) discipline. Lindswell, who had already created history as the first Indonesian world wushu champion, took the bronze ahead of Fong Ying.

Shin Yii was forced to switch to the taiji disciplines after a serious ankle injury three years ago and has certainly made big progress since then.

She was the bronze medallist in the 2006 Doha Asian Games in the combined taijiquan and taijijian events won by Fong Ying.

The two disciplines will also be combined to offer a single gold medal in the Laos Games and Fong Ying reckons the competition will be much tougher compared to the 2007 Korat Games.

“Unlike previously, I don’t see myself as the clear favourite. The Indonesian girl will be a very strong contender for the gold medal. She has improved a lot this year and also won gold in the World Juniors. I also have to look out for my team-mate as she has showed her ability as well,” said the University Putra Malaysia accounting undergraduate.

Fong Ying has not won a major competition this year and it has only made her more determined to practise harder for the Laos Games. She also finished out of the medals in the World Games in Kaohsiung in July.

“I will try my best to put up better performances and hope they will be good enough,” said Fong Ying, who was one of the two Malaysian gold medallists at the 2007 Korat Games.

The other gold medallist was Diana Bong Siong Lin in the nanquan combined events.

Malaysia have a team of 14 exponents for the Laos Games and they are hopeful of repeating a two-gold haul. STAR