First woman Olympic shooter selected for Athens Games

Auxiliary Woman Police Constable Lo Ka-kei is set to become the first Hong Kong woman athlete to compete in an air pistol shooting event in the Olympic Games.

The Olympic Committee of Hong Kong has endorsed Ms Lo's participation in the Athens Games.

She has been enlisted to Elite C of the Hong Kong Sport Scholarship Athletes and awarded a grant of $30,000 for 2004-05 by the Hong Kong Sports Development Board.

"Ka-kei possesses the quality of being stable in terms of muscle memory and competition mindset," said Chief Inspector (Auxiliary) Edgar Yang, captain of the Hong Kong Olympic Shooting Team.

Ms Lo picked up the sport four years ago when she signed up for the Olympic Air Pistol Shooting Introductory Course conducted by the Hong Kong Shooting Association.

By January 2003, she had achieved the minimum qualifying score for the 10-M Ladies' Air Pistol event, and had already taken part in several international competitions, including the World Cup in Busan last year. She also competed in the Asian Shooting Championships 2004.

"I joined the Auxiliary Police because I believe that police work and the related training require a high level of discipline, which would help me achieve my goal to become a professional athlete," said Ms Lo.

She participated in the Pre-Olympic World Cup Shooting Championships in Athens in April, and achieved satisfactory results in the 10-M Ladies Air Pistol event. This has enabled her to realise her lifelong dream of visiting the birthplace of the Olympics and to familiarise herself with the venue and weather for the upcoming Olympic Games.

Ends/Tuesday, June 1, 2004