[Self-reliance during the pandemic] An Olympic Judge turned "master gymnastics teacher" in an industrial building【疫境自強】雙失裁判轉型工廈「名師」 體操補習天王
Updated: Jan 15
What have you lost under the COVID-19 pandemic? YUEN Ka Keung, a Hong Kong-born international Category II artistic gymnastics judge, has made a name for himself in Europe in recent years, but this year he has encountered a series of difficulties. Not only were his competitions canceled and his work plans disrupted, but his wish to teach at a tertiary institution was also dashed. However, he did not give up on his gymnastics dream. He and a friend opened a private gymnastics class "Inovian Sport Training" in an industrial building, creating a new teaching method for nurturing talent!
Even in major gymnastics competitions such as the Olympics and World Championships, Ka Keung is almost always present on the judging panel where scores are tallied on the spot. He obtained his international judge brevet and coach qualifications as early as 2001, and a few years ago he went to Russia to further his post-graduate studies in sports administration. His abilities are highly recognized by the international gymnastics community, and he is frequently appointed as the most respected difficulty and reference judge in major competitions.
The COVID-19 pandemic completely disrupted Ka Keung's work plans. He was originally scheduled to judge the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup in Azerbaijan in March, but the severe pandemic forced his cancellation. His application to return to Hong Kong to teach at a tertiary institution also failed, leaving him with almost no income. Fortunately, every cloud has a silver lining. He decided to partner with his friend Jospeh, also a gymnastics coach, to rent a gymnastics studio in an industrial building owned by Joseph and open a private classroom. He said, "I really hope to utilize my years of gymnastics knowledge to discover potential gymnastics stars, lay a technical foundation for them, and prepare them for future athletic careers."
The gymnastics studio, less than 1,200 square feet, is fully equipped with parallel bars and horizontal bar training equipment. Joseph's gymnastics classes employ a unique tutoring method. CK explained, "We will focus on individual events and movements, and tend towards scientific training. We will first help students improve their strength before introducing them to various equipment, helping them improve weaknesses in specific movements, which will naturally improve the quality of their movements." Ka Keung also admitted that compared to Eastern European countries like Ukraine and Georgia, Hong Kong's gymnastics population is not small. He hopes to widely promote systematic training, believing it will help improve the local gymnastics level in the long run.
新冠肺炎下你失去甚麼？本港土生土長的國際二級體操裁判袁家強，近年旅歐執法打響名堂，惟今年卻連番遇上困境，不但比賽腰斬工作計畫中斷，連執教大專院校的願望亦落空。但他沒有就此放棄體操夢，更跟好友在工廈開辦私人體操班授徒，打造嶄新補習社教法育苗！
即使在奧運、世界錦標賽等各項體操大賽，只要放眼即場計分的裁判席，基本上也有家強的蹤影。他早在〇一年已考獲國際裁判及教練資格，年前更曾赴俄羅斯深造體育管理知識，能力深得國際體操界認同，經常獲委任為大賽最尊崇的難度及參考裁判。
一場新冠肺炎疫情，將家強的工作計畫遭徹底打亂，原先他在三月擔任體操世界盃阿塞拜疆站裁判，結果疫情嚴重被逼腰斬，申請回港擔任大專教職也落空，一切收入幾近盡失。幸天無絕人之路，他決定跟同為體操教練的好友Joseph合夥，租用後者開設的工廈體操室開設私人教室，他說：「很希望活用自己多年所學的體操知識，從中發掘潛質體操新星，為他們打下技術基礎，為未來朝運動員行列準備。」
眼前不足一千二百呎的體操室，雙槓、單槓訓練設備一應俱全，原來由Joseph開辦的體操班，採用別具一格的補習社教法。Joesph表示：「我們將集中個別項目及動作訓練，並傾向科學化訓練，先讓學員提升力量，才安排接觸各種器具，助學員改善特定動作的弱點，自然可提升動作質素。」家強也坦言比起烏克蘭、格魯吉亞等東歐國家，本港的體操人口不算稀少，期望廣泛推行系統性訓練，深信長遠有助提升本地體操水平。
來源網址 : 疫境自強雙失裁判轉型工廈名師-體操補習天王 | 星島頭條
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