WONG-DERFUL CAREER

By Gordon De Souza
Edited By Joshua Tan
Pictured by John Heng in Vientiane

At 40, staying fit could be a problem. But discus thrower James Wong not only ensures that but goes many steps further: by being our latest SEA Games gold medallist.
 
Prolific Athlete
Easily one of Singapores most prolific athletes, he won the Discus event in Vientiane on Wednesday (Dec 16) with a distance of 53.60m to continue a wonderful career marked by dedication and consistency. The towering figure was confident of winning but he, for all his experience, did have some reservations. "I was definitely worried that my opponents would outperform me," he said.
 
Closest Rivals
What James did here was to methodically devastate his two closest rivals, both from Thailand. His first throw was a warning shot to all those who thought he might be over the hill. But he couldn't do much with his second and third throws. From then on, he began to make his move until the sixth throw when he clearly established himself as the "Discus King". Asked what his opponents might think about his winning ways all these years, he said, "No doubt they wanted to win but they were also very happy to see me stay on top after all this time."
 
True Gentleman
And like a true gentleman, he thanked the people around him for his latest triumph."For me, this is one of my milestones and I appreciate the many people who have helped me achieve it," he said. Asked how long he will continue, he added, "I'll go on for as long as I can. But at the next SEA Games, I'll be 42. Hopefully, we can see more athletes taking over my role," he said.