If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Nobody is more aware of this classic maxim than Hong Kong windsurfer Chan King-yin who overcame tremendous pressure to defend his gold medal in the men's mistral class at the recent Guangzhou Asian Games.
Despite several setbacks, he refused to give up and persisted through his heats to eventually match Lee Lai-shan's feat of scoring gold in two consecutive games.
He recently told news.gov.hk the glory of his previous success brought his sporting career unprecedented anxiety when it came time to defend his title, a campaign which was far from smooth sailing.
“I won a gold medal in the 2006 Doha Asian Games, so both the public and the media expected me to achieve gold again this year. My coach and I also wanted to achieve good results. I put a lot of pressure on myself, and that triggered a lot of stress. I think that is why I performed badly in the early stage of the competition.”
Shouldering such a huge burden, Chan choked under the pressure, causing a lacklustre start to his campaign, scoring only second or third place finishes in the opening heats.
“The burden was too heavy. I have never been so nervous. I fell off the board into the water – a crucial mistake windsurfers should not make, but I did it twice! I was so angry with myself,” the 28-year-old said.
Title fight
After seeing Hong Kong cyclist Jamie Wong recover from a fall to take silver in the women’s points race, Chan was inspired to fight back.
“I was focused and resolved to win. As an athlete, I train for a long time, so I will regret making any serious errors during an event. When I watched Jamie’s accident on television I truly understood the sporting spirit and decided I should work even harder in my races,” he said.
A chat with fellow windsurfer and friend Cheng Kwok-fai the night before the last day of racing got him mentally pumped for the main event.
Chan recalls: "He said to me 'what are you worrying about? You have nothing to lose. All you need to do is try your best to catch up'. I said to myself he's right. The leading athlete was probably under greater pressure as he had to maintain his position.
“I could simply have given up as I still would have got a medal for the first or second runner-up place. But I chose to try to meet the target I had set for myself before the competition. In the end, I had an excellent performance. I won all three races on the last day and took home the gold medal.”
The right spirit
Chan said the sporting spirit is not exclusive to athletes.
“Hong Kong people are hardworking, they work six or even seven days a week. They don’t mind low pay or long working hours. In the same way, athletes do not only strive for medals, we all enjoy the training and work hard to achieve our dreams. It may take a few years or even a decade to do it, but we try our best.”
The Chan of today now knows not to give up easily. However, he admitted he has twice thought about quitting. The first time, he had just graduated from Form Five and was deciding between school and being a full-time athlete.
“The second time came in 2004. I won a bronze medal in the 2002 Pusan Asian Games. I just got promoted from the youth division to the men’s division. I was pretty proud of myself. However, I got injured in 2003, my performance dropped and I didn’t produce any results for the next year. My coach advised me to make a contingency plan if I eventually quit. My family even suggested I study in Australia.
“Lee Lai-shan returned from the 2004 Athens Olympics and had a chat with me. She said I could do well in training but couldn’t produce the same standard in races. She suggested I see a sports psychologist.”
The councillor said Chan was too nervous when racing and easily distracted by other competitors, making him unable to start each race with a clear mind. His condition improved after six months and he slowly regained his confidence and won the Asian Championships in 2005.
London bound
With his successful defence of his Asian Games gold, Chan has put the issue behind him and is focusing on his next target – the 2012 London Olympics.
He must perform well in next year’s World Championships to qualify for the Olympics. A series of regattas have been planned for the coming year to prepare him for the championships.
Chan has sacrificed family time for his dream. His drive comes from a slogan he saw on the Mainland a decade ago, which literally means “work hard, work hard and work harder; persist, persist and persist again; endure, endure and endure longer”.
“When I feel exhausted in training, I tell myself to persist. When I want to win but I fail, I tell myself to endure. When I feel I’m not good enough, I tell myself to work harder,” he said.
It may sound harsh, but Chan insists his passion for competition is his labour of love, making the rewards after a successful campaign all the more sweet.
