Asian Games: gymnast Ng celebrates ‘release’ despite disappointing end to career

Hong Kong gymnast Ng Kiu-chung endured a disappointing end to his 21-year career, after a last-place finish in the men’s rings final at the Asian Games on Thursday.

Ng, who was the last to perform at the Huanglong Sports Centre Gymnasium, needed to score more than 14.3 points to make it onto the podium for the first time in his four Asiad appearances.

Performing a routine with a 5.8 in difficulty, the veteran’s execution on the rings earned him another 8.166 points – the second lowest among the finalists. In the end, the 32-year-old only managed to post a score of 13.966.

Even with the disappointing marks, Ng was proud of his performance.

“I really enjoyed it, it’s like a final show for me,” he said. “My target was to do the best I can and to complete the whole routine – [it’s] like a release for me.”

With his family watching from the stands, Ng explained the importance of letting his one-year-old daughter watch his last performance.

“Throughout my career, gymnastics has become a solid part of my life,” said Ng, who was fourth in the men’s rings final at the 2018 Games in Jakarta. “That’s what I want my daughter to see me compete in Hangzhou.

“I’ve been through a lot of injuries, but I always told myself I could not quit like that.”

Ng can still be pleased by his recent accomplishments, however, as he won bronze at the Asian Championships in Singapore in June.

“Looking back, I’d say I have had a complete career, as I was able to perform to my standard this time,” he said.

Despite the worst execution score at 8.0, North Korea’s Jong Ryon-gil still finished in fourth place, with a difficulty score of 6.3.

China’s Lan Xingyu, who progressed to the final as the top overall athlete, set the bar high right from the beginning.

The 25-year-old from Guangxi was the first to perform in the eight-man final, and the former world champion improved on his qualification score by almost half a point to score a stunning 15.433 for a gold-medal finish.

Vietnam’s Nguyen Van Khanh Phong, who scored 14.600, and Wataru Tanigawa of Japan with 14.300, took silver and bronze respectively.