Source: umagazine
Lai Ka Tong is a third-year student majoring in human resources in the Faculty of Business Administration. He is the current vice-captain of the Men’s Basketball Team at UM. Lai received the ‘Top Scorer’ title in the Macao Basketball League 2014, and his team won the 2015/2016 Macao Inter-varsity Basketball Championship. With these achievements under his belt, it is no wonder he is known as ‘Macao’s Yao Ming
‘Playing basketball makes me happy.’
Lai was already very tall when he was a teenager, so he was routinely asked to join basketball games. Playing basketball with his friends after school made him fall in love with the sport, and he has never looked back. Now a college athlete, he loves the sense of camaraderie from working with his teammates towards a common goal, and the sense of achievement that comes from winning a competition. But above all, he loves the opportunities to represent Macao at various competitions and win championships for UM, which is something he never dreamed he would do when he was a teenager.
Countless Hours of Training
As is true for any athlete, one minute of glory on the winners’ podium is the result of countless hours of training. Being a college student and a basketball player, Lai understands all too well the difficulty of juggling academic commitments and athletic training. ‘We usually train until late at night, with classes to attend the next morning. So sometimes we don’t have enough time to rest,’ he says.
‘But this is what you have to do when you love something. You have to sacrifice your leisure time, and you have to constantly motivate yourself and be strict with yourself.’ When he was a teenager, Lai sometimes suffered painful injuries from playing basketball. During those times when he considered giving up basketball because of the pain, he persevered because of his mother’s words: ‘We should not give up what we love to do too easily.’ Now an adult, he views stressas a source of motivation rather than an impediment to progress.
Looking Forward to More Support
The support of Lai’s family and friends means a lot to him. ‘With their support, even a challenging situation seems to become less daunting,’ he says. ‘When I encounter setbacks, the words of encouragement from my coach and senior athletes help reinforce my faith in myself.’
Lai is pleased to see that there are more sports facilities on the campus, and that the university provides great support, both practical and emotional, to the athletes in various aspects. ‘I’m always happy to see people cheer for us at a competition. For example, the university’s management often attend our competitions to cheer for us. And I still remember the first time I participated in Chinese University Basketball Association League (CUBA). People who probably had never heard of us were cheering for us, which was very touching. People’s support and encouragement motivate us to work harder,’ he says.
Looking to the future, Lai hopes that more people in Macao will follow local basketball development. He also hopes that one day he will become a professional athlete, or better yet, a star athlete. ‘I want to find a job that is related to basketball. In fact, I would love to become a teacher. I think it’d be fun to teach children to play basketball,’ he says.
