Wu Siu-hong on course for elusive individual medal
Bowler puts himself in contention by taking the first-round lead in the 16-strong men's masters
Hong Kong's Wu Siu-hong is poised to challenge for his first individual Asian Games medal after an impressive start in the men's masters.
Wu, who turns 30 next month, stayed on top of the 16-man table after the first round with a 10-pin lead over Hussain Naisir Alsuwaidi, of United Arab Emirates.
Wu scored 1,764 pins after eight games, while Du Jianchao, of China, is third with 1,725 pins. Another eight games will be held today. The top three overall then face off for the medals.
He did it well today on the short oil pattern [the way the wooden lanes are oiled to speed up the ball] which is his favourite
"He did it well today on the short oil pattern [the way the wooden lanes are oiled to speed up the ball] which is his favourite, and although day two will start in the long oil pattern, he is also very confident as we did well on it during the team competition," said Vivien Lau Chiang-chu, chairman of the Hong Kong Bowling Congress.
"After securing a medal in the team event, the pressure is off and Wu can stay relaxed and challenge for an individual medal," she said.
Hailed as a prodigy at the age of 16 after capturing double gold medals at the 2001 East Asian Games, Wu returned empty-handed from the Asian Games in Busan and Doha and it was not until 2010 in Guangzhou that he won his first, in the team event. He is still waiting for the elusive individual honour.
