Mark Leong buoyed by first Asian waterski title

SINGAPORE — At last year’s Asian Waterski and Wakeboarding Championships in Bangkok, Thailand, Singapore’s Mark Leong set a new national record — 1.5 buoys on the 11.25m rope — in the slalom event, but was only able to bring home the bronze medal.

While the 18-year-old was unable to better his national record at this year’s Asian championships at Yeonggwang County in South Korea, it mattered little to him as he managed to secure his first-ever Asian title over the weekend.

Leong, a student at Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), posted a score of 4.5 buoys on the 12m rope length to record an overall score of 1109.59 points. He finished comfortably ahead of South Korean duo Jeong Ji-min (3.5 buoys on the 13m rope) and Cho Beom-geun (3 buoys on the 13m rope), who placed second and third, respectively.

“I am glad to have been able to hear the national anthem played at the Asian Championships this year,” Leong, who returned to Singapore on Sunday night (Aug 28), told TODAY.

“In terms of confidence, it’s a real booster, because I wasn’t expecting to win the gold as the people who I went up against had beaten me multiple times before.

“However, after placing second in the preliminary rounds, I knew I had a shot at gold because I hadn’t hit my best yet. So I went into the final confidently, kept my cool and I felt great once I hit the water. Thankfully everything worked out in the end.

“But there are a lot of other external factors that helped me achieve this gold as well — including support from the Singapore Waterski & Wakeboard Federation (SWWF), the Singapore Sports Institute (SSI), ACS(I), and, of course, my family.”

Leong’s ability to manage the tricky conditions of the Korean waters while handling the pressure of competition also impressed SWWF high performance manager Paul Fong, who believes this title is just the tip of the iceberg for the young waterskier.

“Mark’s been steadily improving (over the years), and now he has shown that he can do it when the time comes,” said Fong, a three-time Asian title winner. “Korea wasn’t an easy place to compete in, because it was windy over there and the water conditions weren’t great.

“He wasn’t the No 1 seed either, but he held his nerve and managed to set the pace. You look at the final scores ... he finished one rope length ahead of everyone else. That shows you he managed to handle the pressure and the conditions very well.

“His rise from a bronze medallist at the Asian Championships to becoming an Asian champion (in a year) is what we have been expecting from him. We hope he continues to defend his Asian title in the years to come and at some point set a new Asian slalom record.”

For now, Leong, who won gold in the slalom at last year’s SEA Games on home soil, is focused on defending both his Asian and SEA Games titles next year.

“My next objectives are to defend both my Asian and SEA Games titles in 2017,” revealed Leong, who will also be competing in the Asia & Oceania Championships in New Zealand at the start of next year.

“My aim is to improve on how I’m skiing right now, not get complacent, and concentrate on my training.

“If I do all this and stick to my training schedule, I’ll be better equipped to tackle larger and more difficult competitions with confidence in future. My long-term goal is to win a medal at the World Championships, and I’ll be working hard towards that.”