Cheung ‘hungry for action’ after 6-month injury hiatus
Foil fencer Cheung Siu-lun, who will return from injury at this weekend’s Hong Kong Open Championships, has said he must overcome a “psychological barrier” as he prepares to compete for the first time in six months.
The 37-year-old ruptured his left Achilles tendon in May competing at the Incheon Grand Prix in Korea. He said his recovery was “way ahead of schedule”, given it could take up to a full year to heal and compete again.
The seasoned veteran, ranked No 141, said he was “excited and hungry for action” but admitted he was more conscious than ever about protecting his body.
“First I need to retrieve that competitive feeling,” Cheung said, who only picked up his weapon three weeks ago. “The psychological barrier is lingering, so obviously I will not be going at full strength.”
Cheung, who still has the Asian Games and the Paris Olympics in his sights, said he hoped to survive the group stage and progress into the second round tomorrow.
“Anything with the Achilles is serious for any athlete, I am more cautious even with my warm-ups now. I certainly hope there will be no more injuries this season,” the former Asian champion said.
The two-day Hong Kong Open Championships at AsiaWorldExpo, cancelled in 2020 because of the pandemic, is the final local tournament before the year ends.
Apart from a host of local fencers, including the bulk of Team Hong Kong, several overseas fencers have travelled to the city for the tournament. Big names, however, are lacking, including Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Cheung Ka-long.
Hong Kong’s three-time defending champion is neither injured nor sick, but will instead focus on next week’s World Cup event in Tokyo. Cheung, Hong Kong’s top foilist, crashed out in the opening round of the Bonn World Cup in Germany last month.
After this weekend’s tournament, Hong Kong’s fencers will head overseas for World Cup and Grand Prix events in Vancouver, Orleans, Belgrade, and Tokyo respectively.
The Hong Kong men’s foil team squad of 12 will leave for Japan on Monday.*