Undoubtedly, Lei Cheng I is an outstanding athlete in the field of judo in Macao this year. Having been ranked the 5th in the Asian Youth Judo Championships in Kyrgyzstan in July, this young good athlete seems to have come to a new starting point in her sports career, as her skills and mentality become gradually mature. She was crowned the champion in the Women's 44 kg class in the Asian Youth Judo Championships in Hong Kong and Macao consecutively. In the future, she will keep fighting for the goal of becoming the best three athletes in the Asian Youth Judo Championships.
Making Great Progress with Skills
Since coach Jiro Kase from Japan came to Macao and started coaching two years ago, Lei Cheng I grew dramatically under a new training model. She made a remarkable progress with offensive skills in particular. Lei Cheng I used to think that she was lagging rather far behind her seniors, but she finally proved her strength with her result this year, having fought arduously and persistently. She became much more confident after ranking the 5th in the Asian Youth Judo Championships. When talking about the most satisfactory fight, Lei Cheng I admitted that it should be the Asian Youth Judo Championships hosted in her home place Macao:“I used to be scared by the contestants from Japan or Korea in the past, but this time I could defeat a Korean contestant and became the champion, my mentality changed a lot.”
Knowing the Difference in Strength
In spite of the great progress with recent results, Lei Cheng I did not slow down her pace and become complacent, especially after she fought against her idol - Jeong Bo-kyeong, who is among the best three athletes in the Olympics, in the Asian Championships. This fight made her understand the difference with the first-tier contestants from Asia:“Her skills were very complete and the chance she took to make an offense was absolutely good. If I want to catch up with the Asian level, I must be strengthened in different aspects.”Before she is promoted to the Adult Category and has her weight class upgraded, Lei Cheng I will still practice at the 44 kg class arduously, with the goal to break into the best three athletes in the Asian Youth Judo Championships.