WHEN artistic gymnast Jeremiah Loo Phay Xing, 24, takes part in the Tokyo Olympics (July 23-Aug 8 ), one person will definitely be glued to the television watching his performance.
Penang gymnastics coach Foong Kok Seng, who first started coaching him when he was seven years old, will be rooting for him, of course. After all, he had taken Jeremiah under his wings for five to six years.
Jeremiah’s talent was obvious to all during his first Sukma (Malaysia Games) when as a 12-year-old, he was beating even opponents as old as 21 to finish fourth.
“When I first saw him, he was a precocious child who could do handstand at the age of six. He also has a good body posture. I invited him to join his elder brother and sister in our training programme.
“I wished to see him take part in the Olympics then because we have never reached that level and we wanted to train him up.
“His dad is also an ex-gymnast and it was very easy for us to communicate. He gave us 100 percent support.
“Sometimes, I trained him one on one. It could be boring but I wanted to instil in him a desire to win. And you can see that streak in his character. Even after losing in a competition, he would really cry and ask for more training. Other times, he would ask to quit because he felt he was a victim of unfair judging,” Foong recalled.
In moments like this, the morale support from his parents, Loo Keh Hoon and Shirley Lee, and siblings, Jeremy and Jerelyn, was crucial.
Asked about Jeremiah’s Olympic medal hopes, Foong said it would be a great achievement if he could qualify for the final round.
“As a matter of fact, there are many classy competitors who can perform with a higher degree of difficulty than Jeremiah.
“He is the second Malaysian man after Ng Shu Wai to qualify for the Olympics artistic gymnastics. He will be the first Malaysian if he can get into the final round.
“I have advised him not to be stressed and to just go in and have fun.
“I have also advised him to continue participating after the Olympics, at least for another two years and eye the Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games,” Foong said.
Of all the six apparatus, Jeremiah’s pet event is the pommel horse, in which he won a gold medal in the 2017 SEA Games in Jakarta.
Foong himself was a late starter, picking up gymnastics from his seniors at Chung Hwa Secondary School in 1998. At that time, Penang had no full-time or part-time coach.
Later, Chinese coach Fan Xi Zi was sent to Penang and he helped develop Foong and other state trainees in 2000-21.
Foong’s highest achievement as a national gymnast came in the 2003 All Japan International Men’s Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships where he won three gold, one silver and one bronze medals.
Besides Malaysia, the other participating countries were the United States, Russia, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
As a former international gymnast who had been trained in Japan and China, Foong understands the sacrifices and hardship that Jeremiah had to go through.
Jeremiah was 14 years old when he was sent to China by the National Sports Council for a four-year training in Yunan, Guangzhou and Tianjin.
“I can tell you that he must have taken a lot of punishments there. In China, the training is terrible. You have to do one hour handstand every day. I stayed there for two weeks and I had to endure a lot of struggles.
“They push you extremely hard in training. It’s their culture and you have to adapt.
“In 2002, I was selected to go to Japan for a one-year intensive training.
“During winter, they would tell you to do handstand outside in the freezing cold. You cannot discuss with them even if you have swollen legs.
“Every trainee has to follow the coach’s instruction. Their parents trust the coach. They train your psychology. I believe that is their culture,” Foong said.
Although they may be a bit less harsh now, Foong believes the Chinese and Japanese coaches want to ingrain a sense of excellence and discipline in their students.
Since 2003, Foong has been hired as a full-time coach by the Penang State Sports Council. Over the past 18 years, he has rubbed shoulders with some foreign coaches.
Foong partnered China coach Zhang Jin Quan for 10 years from 2006 to 2016 when they were coaching the Penang men’s team.
He also got some insights by observing how the Bulgarian couple – Bogomil Momchilova and his wife, Gergana – brought up the Penang girls’ team.
In 2009, the National Sports Council selected Foong to attend a half-year course in Diploma in Coaching at the University of Leipzig.
Today, Foong is the head coach of the Penang artistic gymnastics team. He has another fellow full-time coach, Tan Ai Ling, and three part-time coaches – Khor Mi Er, Rico Tan Teik Jin and Saw Kin Kit – to assist him in developing the junior, backup and elite teams.
Foong, who trains most of his athletes at the Penang State Sports Council in Batu Uban and the Junior Prima Gymnastics Centre in Tanjung Bunga, is proud that Penang has been regularly a fine feeder for the national team.
Currently, Penang has five male and two female gymnasts from age 12 to 24 in the national team. They are Jeremiah Loo, Ng Chun Chen, and Teoh Chuen Feng (men’s senior), Rachel Yeap Li Wen and Zarith Imaan (women’s senior) and Wilson Yeoh, Liew Kai Jack and Mohd Adam Khalish (boys’ junior).
Besides coaching, Foong has also been an international judge since 2012. Every four years he has to renew his judging licence. The last time, he had to spend RM6,000 for air tickets and accommodation to undergo test for his licence renewal.
“I give myself another 10 years in coaching. We’ve a talented batch of young gymnasts with the state team and my dream is to see them compete in the Youth Olympics, Asian Junior Championships or World Junior Championships.
“Each time when I am on my international judging assignments and see my gymnasts in action, I feel proud. Although I have to spend a lot for my judging licence, I feel it is worth it,” Foong said.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Darwina Mohd Daud and courtesy of Foong Kok Seng