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PAGE 4 • AUGUST 18, 2011 CHINA DAILY BASKETBALL & SWIMMING HK a crowd favorite despite blowouts By SUN XIAOCHEN double-digit points while nailing CHINA DAILY nine 3-pointers. The Hong Kong players were SHENZHEN —Hong Kong’s bas- trapped inside and were consis- ketball team was outsized and over- tently forced to shoot without powered at the Universiade, losing eff ective chemistry. Th ey delivered three consecutive group matches by only fi ve assists and turned the ball vast margins. over 25 times per game — the most Without big guys in the paint or at the event. sharpshooters on the perimeter, the Chiu attributed the losses to poor team could hardly secure its basket offense and a limited amount of while struggling for an outside open training. shot. “We are pretty equal on height, Th e squad has slipped to the bot- but our body strength is far less than tom of all 23 lineups at the meet theirs,” he said. while ranking last in six out of the “We haven’t reached the interna- 12 team-statistic categories. tional standard physically.” But Hong Kong’s players rolled All 15 of the roster members are with the punches full-time university students, who and celebrated could only train twice a week dur- every fast break ing the eight-week summer vaca- and free throw, tion, Chiu said. with zealous Th e team’s top scorer, Chan Yik- BASKETBALL support from the Lun, who scores an average of 14 crowd. points a game, shrugged off the Head coach Chiu Wing-Leung blows to their confidence while remained upbeat after the team hailing the fans’ applause. lost to European powerhouse Ser- “(Th e defeat) won’t hamper our bia 102 - 46 in its third game yes- minds or our self-confi dence,” the terday. 24-year-old said. “We are already “We knew where we were before proud to have played here. We feel the meet,” Chiu said. like we’re playing in Hong Kong “We only expected one victory in here. Th e Shenzhen fans cheer for the preliminary round. Although us, which motivates us.” we didn’t make it, I still feel satisfi ed Chiu has set no scoring goals as about our performance.” the team prepares to face Canada Th e Serbian team’s power advan- in its next game, where a loss would tage led to 57 rebounds and 54 knock it out of the event. points in the paint while allow- “We cherish this meet very much, ing the Hong Kong squad only 21 as we don’t have many chances rebounds and 18 points within the to play international games,” the key. And the Serbs’ offense shot coach, who was a guard with the a solid 50 percent from the field Hong Kong Basketball League’s Fly- GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY (37-74 FGs) as fi ve players scored ing Eagles team, said. Players from Hong Kong ﬁ ght for the ball during the team’s 102-46 loss to Serbia yesterday. Elite swimmers enjoy opportunity to have fun at the pool By SUN XIAOCHEN the 50m breaststroke gold. “I am ade) is something that makes you CHINA DAILY very happy to be here and racing feel you’re reaching a new level. To with the rest of the best (student) be exposed to a diff erent culture is SHENZHEN — Everybody took swimmers in the world.” something that can help you feel like a step forward. China’s rising star, Lu Ying you’ve done it.” Or, at least, a stroke forward. claimed the100m butterfly title Australia’s Olympic gold medal- A group of promising swimmers and set a new event record at 57.86 ist, Alice Mills, echoed Chandler’s from the United States and Austra- seconds. sentiment in the mixed zone aft er lia plunged into the pool at the Uni- Even so, Lu, who had already finishing third in the women’s versiade yesterday, won gold in the 50m butterfl y, said 100m butterfl y in 59.11 sec. approaching the she wasn’t feeling her best. “It’s my third Universiade,” Mills event as a chance to “Actually, I was not in my best said. “Every time I come here, I’m GAO ERQIANG / CHINA DAILY SWIMMING gain experience at form. I feel so tired aft er racing at surprised with the enthusiasm and an elite event. the Shanghai Worlds last month. China Lu Ying set a Games record on her way to winning the women’s confi dence the young swimmers “It means a lot. To win inter- Anyway, the result is not so impor- 100m butterﬂ y gold medal yesterday at the Universiade. gain through the meet. It’s a good national medals any place is very tant here, it’s a stage for learning,” er a bronze medal in the 4x200m “I’ve never been to a University thing to be part of it.” meaningful, something I don’t get she said. freestyle relay. Games before. I was really impressed Mills claimed gold in both the many of,” said American swim- Lu also teamed with Tang Yi, Chandler won her race with a with the quality of the competition,” freestyle and the medley 4x100m mer Annie Chandler, who won Zhu Qianwei and Liu Jing to deliv- time of 31.13 seconds. she said. “(Coming to the Universi- relays at the 2004 Athens Olympics..

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