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The following is issued on behalf of the 2009 East Asian Games (HK) Ltd.:
Steven Patrick Marie Josee Wong is a name Hong Kong will be talking about for a long, long time as he was the winner of the 2009 East Asian Games first gold medal.
Twisting and turning, whirling and twirling his way to the finish line in the Cycling BMX Men Elite final in a time of 30.181 seconds, he pipped the Japanese rider Masahiro Sampei by 0.564 seconds.
Third was China's Zhao Zhiyang, almost a full second further back.
Speaking before the medal ceremony, 21-year-old Wong said he was very happy with his ride and was in full praise of the riding circuit.
"When the Hong Kong public remembers my name, I sincerely hope that they give recognition to BMX as a sport," a smiling Wong said.
He added that the Hong Kong Jockey Club International BMX Park, where the competition was held, should be put to more use as it was the perfect surface for this type of cycling.
A full five minutes later, Ma Liyun of China dashed to the tape in a time of 35.746 seconds in the women's version of the same race. Second in this race was Ayaka Miwa of Japan, 1.061 second behind. Third was another Chinese rider, Jiang Nannan in a time of 39.200 seconds. Ma said she was very satisfied with her performance.
Ends/Saturday, December 5, 2009
Issued at HKT 16:40
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