A post mortem of events normally emphasizes on the negative side of a review or analysis after said event has taken place. Onlookers comment on what went wrong, what should have been and what could be done better next time. That is as it should be. No arguments there.But let's not just remember the what-went-wrongs. This is a little article about the what-went-rights. Often neglected but never forgotten in the hearts and minds of those involved - This time around, one can confidently declare that there were too many things that went right to not want to announce it to the whole world! Sarawakians as we are, we're not one to blow our own horn, but hey, someone's gotta do it! :D
SELECTIONS - fresh faces and roaring energy!! Tenent number five: Indomitable Spirit, so bright you have to put shades on! ...or so you would think. In this particular case, not really. We have: four guys in their 30s and one in his late 20s. All married and most with kids. Two career-oriented, old ladies who are at that certain age where Master Chai is beginning to worry that they may miss their boat to marriageland and is actively trying to matchmake them off, and finally the youngest of the group, babyfaced Law Chai who has started to sport panda eyes from nights of study and days of exams in University. Apart from the little one, everyone else has not competed or even trained in at least 3-5 years. In the case of our lovingly proclaimed "oldest rookie", Yeo Kim Guan who is the eldest member of our group, this will be his first tournament ever. The fathers look exhausted and everybody works all day, everyday. Training time is scarce and absences will be inevitable. We are what the STA seniors, Master Chai, Misters Leong, Chi, Sim and Ting refer to jokingly as "The Aunties and Uncles Team." Except it's not a joke.
TRAINING - In one word, Exhausting! In our Chief Coach Jeremy Lo's case, exhausted and blind after 8-10 hours of non-stop detailed tattoo work he does at his studio (www.monkeytat2.zxq.net) just before rushing to training. However, while our bodies complain to the sound of creaking joints and protesting muscles, it would be a lie to say that as a team, we did not enjoy the training on some level or other. Excursions to the nearest "kopitiam" to "catch snakes" after MSN Coach Nurasiman's gym workouts was a regular and popular pastime during training season, while midnight supper sessions after training nights were heartily approved of by team members - although contested by the groans of the weighing scales when our sparrers were trying to make it into their weight categories! The entire team was getting along with one another so well that Tenent number one: Courtesy, was not a forced affair. Helping one another out was encouraging rather than exasperating and sharing knowledge, know-how and collectively, hundreds of bottles of 100-plus with each other was a pleasure rather than a pain. That's when you realize that Tenent number two: Integrity, really comes into play. When a group of individuals has to spend a large amount of time with one another, they better be like-minded, or failing that, civil. There was no room in this team for ego, calculativity or non team players.
PRE-CHAMPIONSHIP - A week before a competition may be cause for panic anywhere else but here. Conversations during this time revolved around the famous Chicken Rice Balls of Melaka, where to go shopping and what clubs to visit for the two nights in Kuala Lumpur afterwards. Our Team Manager was announced unsurprisingly as Jimmy Lo, whom we unanimously agreed on as THE BEST TEAM MANAGER EVER!!! With his calm, soothing, laid-back energy and natural sense of responsibility, the rest of us had a chance to sigh in relief and let him do all the hard thinking for us! Tenent number three: Perseverance guys!!! One more week and it's PARTY TIME in KL! :D
CHAMPIONSHIP - Helping Melaka's Chief Instructor Mr. Lee Yu Jin and his team set up the championship mats was fun since you got to mingle and make new friends along the way, but what was more fun than that was when he took us to an absolutely amazing chicken rice ball place afterwards!! AND he bought us midnight pizza! Thanks Yu Jin Sir! You made us very happy! We definitely had to practice Tenent number four: Self Control then! Some of us still had to weigh in! Things got hectic when the mens' individual sparring started and all of a sudden there were only three "Team Coach" vests to go around and absolutely no water! If it wasn't for the very necessary assistance of Mrs. Jimmy Lo and Mrs. Chen Kai Loong, Winnie and Ariel, we would have been waterless AND videoless for that entire segment! In the midst of competition we managed to witness a very special phone call for Lam Chung Wei from his little 2-year old son asking him where he was. It was interesting seeing a 95kg man melt into a puddle of sentimental goo when he heard his son's voice. "Oh, Daddy will be home very soon! Daddy's working!" Yeah, kind of!
POST-CHAMPIONSHIP - Mid-Valley Mall, Bavarian Beers, Jackie Chai the Tour Guide, Thai Song and Vanilla Coke, Mercilessly teasing the lovely Amy Bong, All-You-Can-Eat Japanese BBQ, Reeeeeelax!!!!, The Best Kueh Tiaw in the World, Sungei Wang, Petaling Street, Bartholomew Lopez, Christmas Decorations, A very crowded hotel room, Roast Duck, Hokkien Star Wars, High Street Claypot Rice compliments of Master Chai, Mimi Jokes, Jeremy's extra body part, Drunken Hangovers, Dr. Wong, Dr. Wong, Dr. Wong. Enough Said.
P.S: We somehow ended up with 7 golds and 3 silvers somewhere along the line.
Author's Note: Perhaps because we were all of similar age, acceptance levels in terms of personality and stages of life. Perhaps Jimmy, Amy and Lawrence had enough tranquil energy to balance out the occasional emo and frequent crazy. Whatever the reason, as one we agree that this time around, the team feels very, for the lack of a proper English word, "Ngam". Basically, we had a lot of fun and found it difficult to feel too worried about the actual competition. Lacking time for preparation, we didn't play to win in this championship, we played not to lose. Winning was just a bonus... and it was immensely satisfying to see everyone come home with a nice, round, gold bonus just before the start of the new year. :)
Jane Teo
Impressively featured, Jane~ It caught me reading the while and pictured the wild all along. cheers~
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