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Paul McNamara

Head coach Herve Dagorne said the late-blooming Chloe Leung Wing-yee has overcome her Olympic Games disappointment to become a contender for major Asian honours in 2025.
Leung was downcast after being pipped by Ceci Lee Sze-wing to Paris road race selection. However, resuming competition at last month’s World Road Championships, the 27-year-old was Asia’s best performer in the time trial event, where she finished 47th overall.
In the more recent World Track Championships in Copenhagen, only a last-lap crash in the points race ruled Leung out of top-10 contention.
“The disappointment of missing the Olympics could have either driven her to the bottom or helped her,” Dagorne said.
“She maintained a positive attitude and I told her that her time would come.
“She always wants to work hard and she listens. Whatever we decide in terms of strategy and tactics – boom, right away she can apply it.
“[At the World Track Championships] my colleagues from other countries were asking who she was, if she was new. It was not just her performances, but her behaviour on the bike.
“I don’t know what her ceiling is, but she is really good technically and almost perfect with her decision making. Over the past year, she has constantly progressed, she has improved tactically and will continue to develop her strength. She can be on the podium at the National Games and Asian Championships next year.”

Dagorne said Leung, a medallist at the 2018 and 2022 Asian Games, could provide teammate Lee with “an example of how to race, compete and manage competition”.
The pair are poised to train and compete in Australia over the Hong Kong winter, before leading the city’s team at February’s Asian Road Cycling Championships in Thailand, and the same month’s Malaysia-hosted Asian Track Championships.
After Lee’s poor Olympic track cycling debut in August, Dagorne urged the rider to “change the way she is racing”, following repeated instances of her selling herself short with a timid approach to world-level competition.
“She agrees and does it one day, but the next day it is gone,” said Dagorne, 57, who admitted trying to coax Lee’s natural talent to the surface was one of the greatest challenges of his long and successful coaching career.
“If you’re in a competition, you have to give your best, not just follow the others.
“She always wants to do more [training], she thinks if she feels strong, she can race better. You can be the strongest person on earth, [but] it won’t change the results if you’re not trying things.”
Dagorne “saw a little bit of light during this [track] world championships, but not enough”.
At the preceding world championship road race, in Zurich, Lee and Leung were among more than 100 riders who withdrew amid freezing conditions and torrential rain. “Ceci couldn’t use her brakes going downhill, while [Leung] was so cold she couldn’t brake or change gear,” Dagorne said.

In the Danish capital, Lee’s best performance was her sixth-place in the scratch race. The fact Dagorne is confident his rider would have finished on the podium had she positioned herself more astutely for the closing two kilometres explains the unified willingness in Hong Kong cycling circles to commit time and manpower to solving the Lee conundrum.
“The day after the scratch race, her elimination race [where she finished 13th] was terrible,” Dagorne said. “She had problems sleeping because of her scratch race position. There is so much room for improvement. She has everything around her to support her and I still think it will click.”
Dagorne, who will soon have a new endurance coach on board after a shortlist was whittled down to two candidates, noted overall signs of progress for Hong Kong in Denmark. Yeung Cho-yiu and To Cheuk-hei reached the semi-finals of the women’s and men’s keirin, respectively, while Mow Ching-yin was 18th in a blistering men’s points race.
“One year ago, he would have exploded halfway through,” said Dagorne, who has overhauled training and competition programmes since being appointed full-time in March.
“Last winter, they all had five weeks off, which was not my decision. It took three months to reach decent physical condition. This year, they will have a very serious winter to prepare for next season.”


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Late-blooming Chloe Leung sets example for Hong Kong teammate Ceci Lee after Olympic blow

Chloe Leung (second left) and Ceci Lee (far right) after winning the team pursuit bronze at the 2022 Asian Games. Photo: SF&OC

Chloe Leung (right) with sister Boey Leung Bo-yee and their 2022 Asian Games bronze medals. Photo: Dickson Lee

Lee (middle) and Herve Dagorne (second right) after returning from the Paris Olympics. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Hong Kong star Ceci Lee backed for Los Angeles Olympics quest after Paris slump

Hong Kong cyclist Ceci Lee, seen here on arrival from Paris, will receive support from Hong Kong cycling through to LA 2028. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Lee grits her teeth during the Paris road race. Photo: Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China.

Lee is being urged to accelerate her improvement following a hugely disappointing Olympics omnium. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Paris Olympics: swimmer Leon Marchand’s formula for success copied by Hong Kong cyclists

Leon Marchand of France collects gold for the 200 metres individual medley. Photo: Reuters

Ceci Lee of Hong Kong is preparing to cycle in the omnium event in the Paris velodrome. Photo: Dickson Lee

Ceci Lee (front) will ride in the road race before turning her attention to the track. Photo: Eugene Lee

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Ceci Lee finished fifth in a world-level elimination race at the UCI Track Nations Cup. Photo: UCI

William Perrett of Great Britain was among the dominant overseas riders at the Hong Kong Track Nations Cup. Photo: Dickson Lee

Cycling bosses want new head coach Herve Dagorne to ‘bring glory to Hong Kong’, Frenchman targeting international medals

Herve Dagorne is Hong Kong cycling’s new head coach, after his team claimed nine medals at February’s Asian Track Championships. 

Ceci Lee is Hong Kong’s sole hope of having a track cyclist at this year’s Olympics. Photo: Handout

Dagorne was in charge of Hong Kong at the team’s home Nations Cup in March. Photo: Dickson Lee

Sport

Missing out on Paris has driven the young cyclist to possible Asian honours, says coach Dagorne, while Lee has turned in mixed performances


Missing out on Paris has driven the young cyclist to possible Asian honours, says coach Dagorne, while Lee has turned in mixed performances.
