Yiu started playing rugby after watching the Hong Kong Sevens from the stands and realising that speed was just as important as strength.

“The first time my parents learned that I was playing the sport was when we reached the final of the East Asian Games in 2009, and it was televised,” Yiu said. “I had hidden the fact that I was playing rugby from my parents for two years, but when they saw it on television my secret was out. Their attitude slowly began to change after that, and they wanted to get to know me more.”

When Yiu started playing rugby, he worked part-time to support himself. But times have changed and Yiu and Chong both make a living from rugby as the sport in Hong Kong has gone from a leisure activity into a full-time profession.

Chong says her technical skills weren’t great when she started playing rugby five years ago. To break into the team, she had to learn quickly from the more senior players, a period that also saw her acquire the basics of martial arts and wrestling to help cope with the physical demands of rugby.

“Our practices are systematic,” Chong says. “We do some analysis looking at other teams or analysing our [own] performance. Besides strategic goals, our training methods are diversified. For example, we learn some martial arts techniques, which optimises our chances when making physical contact with the opposing team.”

She says there are greater opportunities for women to play and get involved in the three tiers of competition in the Hong Kong 15-a-side league as more women take up the sport.

Chong says there is an important focus on health and fitness for professional rugby players, which involves specific diets. To bulk up more Yiu has developed a fondness for char siu bao (barbecued pork buns).

“I find the differences in dietary habits between my teammates and I quite funny,” he says. “We might like to eat char siu bao but they don’t. Even though char siu bao contains protein and carbohydrates which makes them nutritious.”

Yiu says his teammates prefer meat, vegetables and pasta.

Both players say strong mental preparation is key to their game. When the team brought in psychologists to do mental preparation classes with them, Yiu says this completely changed his game.

“About five to six years ago, it was very hard for me to control my emotions,” he said. “As soon as I made a mistake I’d go into a downward spiral. These mental prep classes enabled me to control my emotions and handle pressure.”

Now when making a mistake he forgets it immediately and moves on. “Even this small change in mentality would improve my performance throughout the entire game.”

So important is mental well-being to both players that they have partnered with Cigna as ambassadors to promote this aspect of the game.

“I would like to tell everyone that being an athlete is not just about the physical strength,” says pint-sized Chong. “To be successful, the brain and heart are also very important.”

Video by Jeff Chen and Bridgette Hall

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