GEORGE TOWN: PENANGITE Christine Vong Su Yen was the island’s ace in the Penang International Junior Age-Group tennis championships at the Penang Sports Club in Jalan Utama here recently.
The 15-year-old outclassed Kedah’s Adrienne Tan Shao Wey 6-2, 6-0 to clinch the Girls' Under-16 singles title before partnering Sabrina Gee Zhen Hzui to grab the Under-16 doubles title, defeating teammates Lim Wan Sean and Yeoh Wei Jiun 6-1, 6-0.
In the Girls’ Under-10 and Under-12 categories, South Koreans ruled the courts when they swept both the singles and doubles titles.
Penang Lawn Tennis Association (PLTA) treasurer Janet Loo said the foreign juniors took part in the Penang tournament to accumulate points to improve on their positions in the Asian Tennis Federation's junior ranking list.
She said the Penang leg was the first of three back-to-back competitions, the other two in Perlis and Langkawi.
The competition was divided into 16 categories in four age-groups: Boys' and Girls' Under-10, Under-12, Under-14 and Under-16, singles and doubles.
The five-day competition was hosted by the PLTA with the cooperation of the state sports council and sponsored by Nestle (M) Bhd and DLP Sporting Goods Sdn Bhd.
At the same time, Loo revealed that Penang players face a shortage of facilities for training and playing, and that the courts at Universaiti Sains Malaysia have been reduced by half due to development.
As a result, the state players have only four venues to rely on. They are Penang Sports Club in Jalan Utama, Universiti Sains Malaysia and Youth and Sports Complex in Batu Uban, and the Chinese Recreation Club in Jalan Burma.
State Youth and Sports, Women, Family and Community Development Committee chairman Chong Eng said tennis, if taken up at a young age, helps to improve the child's speed and agility as it enhances hand-eye coordination and tactical thinking.
Chong Eng said, the PLTA, by hosting an international competition in Penang, has helped parents of junior players reduce their financial burden, as otherwise, they would have to travel overseas to compete.
She pointed out that by bringing in the foreign players, who are top juniors in their respective countries, it has given the opportunity to local players to play against highly rated players from abroad.
RESULTS — Girls’ Under-10 singles s-finals: Kim Dain Hee (Kor) bt Yu Ninomi (Jpn) 6-0, 6-0; Kim Min Seo (Kor) bt Pete Komada (Jpn) 6-1, 6-4.
Final: Kim Min Seo (Kor) bt Kim Dain Hee (Kor) 6-3, 6-0.
Doubles s-finals: Kim Dain Hee-Kim Min Seo (Kor) bt Jane Lau Jie Ying-Julia Komada (Sar-Jpn) 6-0, 6-2; Pete Komada-Yu Ninomi (Jpn) bt Chan Li Ying-Chan Yu Chi (Pg) 6-3, 6-0.
Final: Kim Dain Hee-Kim Min Seo (Kor) bt Pete Komada-Yu Ninomi (Jpn) 6-4, 6-0.
Under-12 singles s-finals: Shin Hye Seo (Kor) bt Clare Cheng Lin Yi (Sin) 6-0, 6-0; Moon Je Ong (Kor) bt Cho Sih Yeong (Kor) 6-4, 6-2.
Final: Shin Hye Seo (Kor) bt Moon Je Ong (Kor) 6-1, 6-2.
Doubles s-finals: Shin Hye Seo-Moon Je Ong (Kor) bt Nonaka Miru-Kumiko Yamaguchi (Jpn) 6-1, 6-2; Clare Cheng Lin Yi-Trisha Mulani (Sin) bt Yuzuna Okubo-Aya Ishikawa (Jpn) 6-2, 6-3.
Final: Shin Hye Seo-Moon Je Ong (Kor) bt Clare Cheng Lin Yi-Trisha Mulani (Sin) 6-1, 6-3.
Under-14 singles s-finals: Nadya Aulia (Ina) bt Shirina Mulani (Sin) 6-0, 6-0; Nodoka Kobayashi (Jpn) bt Sin Su Wen (Sin) 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.
Final: Nadya Aulia (Ina) bt Nodoka Kobayashi (Jpn) 6-1, 6-1.
Doubles s-finals: Nodoka Kobayashi-Nadya Aulia (Jpn-Ina) bt Tammy Tan Kay Shan-Ami Aidillah Saleh (Sin) 6-2, 6-3; Shirina Mulani-Sin Su Wen (Sin) bt Emily Oh Tien Yie-Amanda Chia (Pg-Sin) 6-2, 6-2.
Final: Nodoka Kobayashi-Nadya Aulia (Jpn-Ina) bt Shirina Mulani-Sin Su Wen (Sin) 7-5, 6-3.
Under-16 singles s-finals: Christine Vong Su Yen (Pg) bt Sabrina Gee Zhen Hzui (Pg) 6-1, 6-2; Adrienne Tan Shao Wey (Ked) bt Yeoh Wei Jiun (Pg) 6-2, 6-4
Final: Christine Vong Su Yen (Pg) bt Adrienne Tan Shao Wey (Ked) 6-2, 6-0.
Doubles s-finals: Sabrina Gee Zhen Hzui-Christine Vong Su Yen (Pg) bt Rachel Tan Shiao Yuen-Rudrassinli Tamilsesiya (Pg) 6-0, 6-1; Lim Wan Sean-Yeoh Wei Jiun (Pg) 7-5, 6-3.
Final: Sabrina Gee Zhen Hzui-Christine Vong Su Yen (Pg) bt Lim Wan Sean-Yeoh Wei Jiun (Pg) 6-1, 6-0.