Olympic dream: Man who knows no fear

CHENG Chu Sian, Malaysia’s No 1 archer, exudes the confidence of a man who knows no fear.

It is a trait that comes in handy for one involved in a sport where steady hands and an ability to sustain one’s performance under pressure separates the winners from the rest.

Remarkably, Chu Sian rose to become one of the top-10 recurve archers in the world when he reached a high of No 9 in the world rankings last October.

Although he has slipped a little since then to No 12, the 23-year-old Penang-born remains a big threat to the rest of the field in Beijing.

Chu Sian believes Beijing could be the pinnacle of his archery career, hinting that he would have had enough of the sport he has been involved in since 1993 should he bag a historic medal.

“There are a number of variables involved here and every archer in the competition has a chance to win. It is hard to say who will win, but nothing can be ruled out.

“I have to be ready for anything and I’ve been working hard to prepare for this challenge. It is a demanding sport so you never know how long you can last and what the future will hold,” said Chu Sian, who will be making his Olympic debut.

Chu Sian was first spotted at the Armed Forces Open in 2002 by national coach Lee Jae-hyung and has showed steady improvement under the South Korean over the next six years.

Chu Sian had a breakout year in 2007 when he became the first Malaysian to reach the last eight of the World Outdoor Championships in Leipzig, Germany which also earned him an Olympic berth.

At that time, he was only the second Malaysian archer to qualify for the Olympics after Mon Redee Sut Txi, who competed at the 2004 Athens Olympics, before Muhammad Marbawi Sulaiman and Wan Mohd Khalmizam Wan Abd Aziz confirmed their berths.

He also upset a host of top archers to reach the final of the Good Luck Beijing Invitational tournament, an Olympic test event, last August.

But Chu Sian, who won his only international title at the Asian Grand Prix in Yangon in November 2006, has not had the best of results this year.

He won a silver at the Asian Grand Prix in Bangkok in January but failed to get past the second round of three World Cup meetings he entered.

Chu Sian, who first picked up a bow and arrow at the age of seven when he followed his father, former national archer Joseph Cheng, to the range, did however lead Malaysia to two World Cup finals in the team event.

Now, as the highest ranked archer in the country’s history, he will carry a heavy burden when leading the national team for a hopeful medal in the team event.

“We know that the team event is our best chance of winning a medal. But, as I’ve said before, it all depends on each individual’s performance on the day. Not just our performance but our opponent’s too.

“Personally, I don’t fear meeting anyone as there is nothing much to separate between the top-30 to 40 archers in the world. On any given day, anyone can be beaten,” added Chu Sian.

That ought to be ample warning for the rest of the field to fear Malaysia.

» FACT FILE
CHENG CHU SIAN

■ Date of birth: March 1, 1986
■ Hometown: Penang
■ Height: 182cm

■ Weight: 82kg
■ Coach: Lee Jae-hyung
■ Likes: Listening to music
■ Dislikes: None
■ Favourite movie: Die Hard
■ Career high: Qualifying for the Olympics and quarter-nals of 2007 World Outdoor Championships in Leipzig, Germany
■ Career low: None
■ Previous Olympic appearances: Debutant
■ Beijing events: Team and individual recurve
■ Competition dates: Aug 9-15

New Straits Times