Asian Champion, World Junior Champion, highest world rank at number 5, these are the achievements of 24-year-old Hong Kong national team fencer Cheung Ka Long. However, these wouldn't have been possible without his hard work and determination, and most importantly the support of his parents.
'Ka Long often kept to himself. We often made decisions for him, including what sports he played,' said Cheung's parents, and that is how Cheung first learned about fencing. However, at first, Cheung's mother wanted him to focus on basketball as she was a former basketball player. Yet, Cheung showed greater interest in fencing and his parents decided to allow him to stick with the sport.
'My parents were very strict,' said Cheung, 'in fact, they were a lot stricter than other parents. When I lost a match, they wouldn't comfort me and would only tell me it was okay. Instead, when I cried, they would tell me crying was for the weak.” For a child, this was hard to comprehend, but as Cheung grew, he slowly understood his parents' expectations. 'I don't like being looked down on. It acts as my source of motivation. What my parents said pushed me to improve and helped me understand what my goals were. I would also like to thank them for allowing me to go on this journey. They believed in me and allowed me to go professional before finishing school.'
By competing in the Olympics, Cheung fulfilled his parents' dream as athletes. Although they will not be able to watch his matches in person due to the pandemic, they will still be very excited to watch their son compete through live TV broadcast. No matter what results Cheung gets, one thing is for certain – his parents will always be proud of him.
張家朗校友代表香港出戰東京奧運 運動路有起有跌感激父母栽培
「亞洲劍神」張家朗校友現為香港男子劍擊運動員，年僅24歲，世界排名已升至第5名。如此佳績，除了憑張校友一直努力不懈，更重要的是父母的信任和支持。
張校友的母親為籃球隊前隊員，本來希望兒子能承傳球技，但當她發現兒子對劍擊有更大興趣，便全力支持他的決定。張校友感謝父母的支持和栽培，他回憶從前每次輸了比賽，父母都不會安慰他，更叫他不要因為失敗而流下軟弱的眼淚，只跟他說「沒有甚麼大不了」。張校友不想給父母看扁，遂鞭策自己要不斷進步。
張校友成功爭取到出戰2021東京奧運的入場券，不負雙親對他的期許。雖然由於疫情關係，父母未能赴日觀賽，但無論賽果如何，父母依然會以兒子為榮。
Source: Sports Road - 【東奧・重要的你・張家朗】堅定走過7年全職路 父母嚴厲成就今日「劍神」