Pullers Abigail and Acho return from Greece with medals

KUCHING (Oct 9): National pullers Abigail Kee Zing Ning and Acho Prince Kee Zing Yang continued to shine on the international stage when they competed at the International Federation of Armwrestling (IFA) Championships held in Loutraki, Greece from Sept 30 to Oct 6.

The siblings, accompanied by their father-cum-team manager Dr Stephen Kee Chee Kiong, brought honour to Sarawak and Malaysia by bagging two bronze medals in the tournament participated by the best arm wrestlers in the world. They were the only Malaysians to participate in the competition.

There were mixed feelings for 18-year-old Acho who won the bronze in the Men’s Junior U18 86kg Right Arm but suffered an elbow injury when he also competed in the Left Arm.

“I was disappointed not to have defended the title that I won last year in Malaysia but happy and satisfied that l won bronze in Greece.

“I could have done better in the championships with more training and if our coach Dominic Johnny could come with us,” he told The Borneo Post upon his arrival at the Kuching International Airport on Monday night.

Acho had stopped training last year to focus on his SPM and resumed training in March this year via online guidance from Dominic.

Meanwhile, his 20-year-old sister Abigail cited lack of training facilities and physical training by a coach as their biggest challenge.

“This is the third time that l am competing in the IFA meet. l did not win anything in the first and got a silver in the second in Kuala Lumpur last year.

“I did not expect to finish on the podium as l had to train alone and was still studying  in Kuala Lumpur where there was no suitable training facilities available,” she said.

Under such conditions, she did not set any target for the tournament.

“I did not expect to get a place on the podium because I haven’t trained for a long time.

“So when we went to Greece to compete with bigger and stronger participants, I can still get a place on the podium which l am very proud of that,” added Abigail who picked up a bronze in the Women’s Junior U-20 70kg and above for the Right Arm and finished fourth in the Left Arm.

Stephen took pride in the achievements of his children, saying: “The road to greatness is not always a pretty one. Those who decide that they want to be great, are those who are willing to go through the darkness behind it all.

“In making that decision, comes great sacrifice,” he remarked.