Kiwi teen golfer Lydia Ko is hot property

Teenage golfer Lydia Ko could be about to join Tiger Woods, Michelle Wie and New Zealand's own Danny Lee.

Management giant IMG, who also represent Roger Federer and Justin Timberlake, has confirmed to Sunday News they are tracking the supremely talented Aucklander – the world No 1 women's amateur.

David Rollo, vice-president of IMG's golf division, says while formal talks cannot begin until Ko relinquishes her amateur status, the 14-year-old is "definitely on the radar".

"I've had emails on her from our guys who look after our female athletes and LPGA players in the United States," Rollo said.

"She's very young right now but obviously someone who has got a very, very bright future in front of her.

"I've not met Lydia, or her family, yet. But her results speak for themselves.

"The rules are clear in terms of amateur golfers and professional representation, we need to be respectful of that just as we are with any recruitment.

"But the process would be similar to other instances – you build a relationship with an athlete and when the time comes to turn professional, hopefully you're well placed to secure their services."

Earlier this year, aged 13, Ko became the first female to hold both the New Zealand and Australian amateur champion titles.

Professional 2011 events have further reinforced her talent, finishing fourth in February's New Zealand Open and runner-up, by a single stroke, in the previous month's New South Wales Open – where victory would have seen her become the youngest winner of a women's professional tournament.

She is the youngest player to make the cut in a Ladies European Tour event – a feat achieved when she was 12.

This week Ko flies to the UK to compete in the British Amateur Championship before a crucial American trip in July, where she will attempt to qualify for the US Amateur Championship.

Ko's amateur status has stopped her from banking more than $50,000 in earnings this year but New Zealand Golf are looking after her. Chief executive Dean Murphy says she is vital to the development of the sport and is one of 47 amateur's benefitting from NZG trusts.

"Lydia has really shown Kiwis can get out there and be the best in the world," Murphy said.

"The top trust accounts we have wouldn't be over $20,000 but they're there to help with travel and accommodation expenses for overseas tournaments. Tournaments they otherwise might not be able to attend."

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Cheltzie Lee through to 2nd stage at worlds

Australian winter Olympian Cheltzie Lee progressed to the second stage of the women's competition after a sizzling first round performance at the figure skating world championships in Moscow.

The 18-year-old from Sydney successfully landed a difficult triple toe loop jump combination to finish 18th in the short program which was won by South Korea's Yuna Kim with Miko Ando from Japan second and Russia's Ksenia Makarova third.

Lee skated a program choreographed by England's 1980 gold medallist Robin Cousins to clinch a position in the top 24 that propelled her into the final round of competition on Saturday.

Lee, who divides her training between Sydney and Colorado Springs in the US, finished 20th at the Winter Olympics last year.

She followed that with a 17th place at the 2010 World Championships in Torino, Italy, and came 10th in the Four Continents in Taipei, Taiwan in February.

Current world champion Mao Asada proved disappointing after coming seventh in the short program.


Source: The West

Thrown into the deep end, teenager's fears turn to smiles

KENNETH TO cannot remember all the details of his first day in the pool but he is certain he did not like it.
Born in Hong Kong, the Ashbury teenager - who made two finals at the world short course titles in Dubai this month - came from a family who could not swim and was scared of the water. ''My first real lesson was at Ashfield public pool with my older sister when I was about five years old,'' he said.

''I really didn't like the feeling of being in the water when I started so mum and dad got me into swimming lessons to conquer that fear.'' Despite his parents being non-swimmers, Kenneth, 18, said they had made his safety a priority.

It was after completing a swimming program in year 3 at Haberfield Public School that Kenneth's skills really started to develop. He is now considered a likely prospect for the London Olympics in 2012.

''If you're born in Australia or grow up in Australia, swimming is built into the culture, but trying to get people from other cultures to learn to swim is important, especially people from Middle Eastern or Asian backgrounds who don't really have pools or access to water,'' he said.

''I'm pretty sure all parents always want their kids to be safe, especially around pools and beaches in Australia. It is a vital life skill that every kid has to have from when you're young.''

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Gan but not forgotten: Brendan to play for Malaysia instead of Australia?

SATURDAY night's scoreless draw between Sydney FC and Melbourne Heart might not feature on the highlights reel any time soon but Brendan Gan hopes it marks the spot where his luck finally turned.

The young midfielder joined Sydney amid plenty of fanfare in 2008 after a scintillating season in the NSW Premier League, and while his first season under John Kosmina was fruitful - scoring twice and getting plenty of game time - it's been a different story under Vitezslav Lavicka.

The Sutherland Sharks product has fallen down the pecking order since Kosmina's departure but, in a sign things might be changing, the 22-year-old made his first start of the season at AAMI Park.
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He played 63 minutes, but his energy and enthusiasm were enough to remind Lavicka that Gan should not be forgotten.

''I was a bit short on match fitness and was pretty tired towards the end but I was really happy with how I went,'' he said. ''I helped put together the move that ended with Simon Colosimo making a great clearance off the line, which was probably the best chance of the match. The more time I play, the more I think I can improve and show everyone that I have something to offer this team.''

Asked if he'd done enough to keep his position for the midweek match against Wellington Phoenix, Gan was confident he'd remain on the team sheet: ''Of course it's up to the coaches to do what's best for the team but I'd like to think I'll be playing on Wednesday night.''

Perhaps most crucial to Gan's chances will be the fitness of first-team trio Bruno Cazarine, Stephan Keller and Scott Jamieson, all of whom failed to travel to Melbourne, and will be monitored this week.

Previously a central or attacking midfielder, Gan was instructed by the coaching staff to change his game and learn to play with width, utilising his natural pace with a view to challenging for the right-midfield position that has been difficult to fill since the loss of Karol Kisel.

''The coaches have asked me to make that change, and they've had me focusing on becoming a real box-to-box winger,'' he said. ''It's not a position I've really played in before so it's going to take some changes in my game. But I'll work on it because if that's what they want, I'll keep working until I can get it right.''

Gan described the past year as a ''frustrating experience'', and knows it won't get any easier with the likes of Terry Antonis and Dimitrios Petratos coming through the ranks, while Rhyan Grant, another youngster, is also nipping at his heels. Out of contract at season's end, Gan admitted it was not a nice place to be.

''It's always in the back of your mind when you're out of contract, and not always playing every week,'' he said. ''I'd love to get a new deal with Sydney, and all I can do is keep pressing my claims at training and when I get a chance to play. If that doesn't happen then it's up to me to leave an impression on other clubs. Hopefully, someone thinks I've got something to offer.''

While his hopes of playing for Australia are unlikely to be realised any time soon, Gan's prospects of playing for Malaysia (through bloodlines) are being boosted by the locals who have identified him as a strong prospect for the Tigers.

''My inbox [on] Facebook is overflowing with messages from Malaysian fans who want me to come and play for them,'' he said. ''There's been no contact so far from the Malaysian FA but I'd definitely be open to it.''

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Cambodian Australian carries much more than the hopes of a nation

Weightlifter Vannara Be impresses Indian ladies at the athletes village.

HIS uncle was a boat person, a refugee from Pol Pot's reign of terror. His father was an immigrant who bent his back dawn to dusk picking grapes to provide his family with a future. Now Commonwealth Games weightlifter Vannara Be has become the first Cambodian-born athlete to represent Australia.

So how does he feel?

"Surprised actually," he said after being presented to the media. "I didn't know until someone just told me."

But if Victoria-based Be was vague about his standing in Australian sporting history, he has total clarity about his own family history and the terrible affect the Pol Pot regime had upon it.

"My aunty and uncle were murdered, my grandmother lost an eye," the 22 year-old said. "They say she cried so much when she lost her children that it just disappeared."

In the early 1980s, Be's uncle managed to flee Cambodia for Thailand, then got on a boat to Australia. By 1996 he had become a citizen and on a trip home to Phnom Penh urged Be's uncle to join him in the new country.

"Dad came out on a short-term visa. My aunty was working on a vineyard in the Yarra Valley and dad tagged along and worked with her. When it came time for him to leave, the lady who owned the farm asked him to stay. He said he couldn't leave his family behind so she did all the work to get us all to Australia. It was all because my father had worked so hard."

Just four years old when he arrived in Australia, Be proved he too was a hard worker, helping his parents pick grapes and carrying them in crates from an early age.

"Maybe that's where I got my strength from. Who knows?"

While the source of his talent is a mystery - there is no culture of weightlifting in Cambodia although Be's three sisters have all taken up the sport - there is no question about his earliest motivation.

"I took it up because playing sport meant you could get time off school," he said. "If you were in a competition you could get a whole day off."

The turning point of his career came when the family gained permanent residency last year.

"Before that we were always wondering if we would have to go back to Cambodia," he said. "I had no real goal because I didn't know what my future was. I'd only train once or twice a week. Then when we knew we would be staying I got serious."

Competing in the 62kg class, Be has a best lift of 115kg in snatch and 138kg in the clean and jerk.

While none of his family will be in Delhi, he knows they will be watching him compete on television.

"My mother is so proud, she is ringing me every day," he said.

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