Hong Kong’s surging track cyclist Yeung Cho to make World Championships debut in Paris
- 21-year-old Yeung will make use of the opportunity as she targets Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023
- Hong Kong will send riders for the women’s pursuit and Madison events, but the city’s men’s team will not compete
Track cyclist Yeung Cho-yiu will make her international debut at this week’s World Championships in Paris, with the youngster widely tipped as a future star for the Hong Kong team.
The 21-year-old will be the sole representative in the two individual sprinting events, replacing veteran Sarah Lee Wai-sze, as Hong Kong sends a squad of five riders – including youngsters Lee Sze-wing, Leung Po-yee, Yang Qianyu and Pang Yao – across four disciplines
Three riders have qualified for Hong Kong in the women’s team sprint, but with Sarah Lee instead focusing on her university studies, Yeung can only start in the individual sprint and keirin.
“Yeung has been making great progress recently but still takes time to reach the world’s highest level,” Shen Jinkang, the head coach, said.
“But she has plenty of room for improvement and taking part in the World Championships will be a massive experience that she has never had before.”
Track star Sarah Lee, a double Olympic bronze medallist, did not make her impact on the sport globally until she was 23, after she lifted her first Asian Games gold medal in the 500m time trial in Guangzhou in 2010.
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“Our prime target is the Asian Games in Hangzhou next year and all the hard work and effort made at the World Championships is part of our build-up for the Hangzhou Games,” Jinkang said.
“The endurance team has been training at the Hangzhou Games venue in China and will be up against very strong teams in Paris, but that will also give them another chance to rub shoulders against the world best which can help our Asian Games preparation.”
Hong Kong are one of two teams from Asia to qualify for the team pursuit, the other being Uzbekistan.
Of the four team members, Lee Sze-wing is another rider to watch in the future. The 21-year-old pulled off a surprise win in the individual road race at last year’s China National Games in Shaanxi when she beat a host of experienced riders for the gold medal.
Other than the team pursuit events, she will start in the Madison, a team of two riders event with either Yang or Leung. Hong Kong also qualified for the Madison at last summer’s Tokyo Olympics when Leung and Pang donned the national colours.
Coach Jinkang said there would be no male competitors for Hong Kong at the World Championships, after the city pulled out of the Asian Championships in India earlier this year due to Covid-19.
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“Our male riders do not have sufficient ranking points because of our absence in the Asian Championships where the medallists have a great chance to qualify for the Worlds,” Shen said.
“Although we achieved some good results in some Class I events in Japan, South Korea and Japan, it didn’t help.”
The 2022 track World Championships will kick off on Wednesday at the National Velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, 25km west of Paris. The event will also give riders a taste of what’s to come, as the venue will play host to track cycling events during the 2024 Olympic Games.
