HK's Steven Wong wins BMX gold in Asian Games
Hong Kong cyclists continued to perform well in the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games. Steven Wong handed the former British crown colony another gold medal in cycling by topping the men's BMX event at the Guangzhou
Velodrome on Friday.
The five-time Asian champion clocked 30.337 seconds in the final. Japan's Akifumi Sakamoto finished second in 31.379 while another Japanese Masahiro Sampei took bronze in 31.466.
China's Zhu Yan finished fourth in 32.467 while Hong Kong's Alex John Hunter came in fifth in 32.889. Rounding out the eight-man field were China's Zhao Zhiyang (33.125) and Thai riders Ath Chaimayo (36.664)
and Narong Klinsurai (37.553).
"It has been a hard week. I've done pretty good and I'm happy," Wong told AFP.
"It's not an easy track. I just kept moving on, thinking nothing of the rank. It's lucky to finish the laps safely. When I sprinted in the last section of the lap, I almost fell down," added the 22-year-old,
who was born in Belgium to a Chinese father and a Belgian mother.
Now that he is the Asian Games champion, Wong said that he is looking forward to win the gold in the 2012 London Olympics.
"Since I won many big events. It's time for me to move on, so I'll get ready for the London Olympics," he said.
Wang's victory followed up Chan Chun Hing's win in the men's mountain bike cross-country event yesterday.
Hong Kong also won one gold, four silvers and one bronze medal in the track cycling events, which concluded on Wednesday.
In the women's event, Asian champion Ma Liyun of China took gold in 36.662. She crossed the finish line ahead of Japan's Ayaka Miwa (37.802) and compatriot Yue Cong (37.916). Only three women competed
in the event.
"Although there were not so many riders in the race, the competition was fierce. It required a lot of skill and I'm satisfied with my performance," Ma said.
"My family and team-mates were all cheering for me in the stands. They encouraged and supported me a lot."
Despite China's dominating performance in the Guangzhou Asiad, Ma admitted that Chinese riders are still way behind the top-ranked riders in the world in terms of performance.
"China is one of the top teams in Asia but compared with the top riders in the world, we still have a long way to go. I have a lot of pressure," the 22-year-old said.
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