The soft tennis team leaves for the championship ranking event in Japan. PHOTO SUPPLIED
The Cambodian national soft tennis team has arrived in Japan to participate in the 2023 International Soft Tennis Championship World Ranking Certified Match tournament there, held in Naha, Okinawa Prefecture, from February 10-12.
At the same time, the Kingdom’s wheelchair basketball team was also invited to participate in the Japan-East Asia Network of Exchange for Students and Youths (JENESYS) from February 15-20, as part of a para-athlete exchange programme between the two nations.
The Cambodia Soft Tennis Federation (CSTF) – under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport and with the financial support of the Cambodian SEA Games Organising Committee (CAMSOC) – sent 16 delegates to participate.
Among them, there are six male and six female athletes led by head coach Yi Sarin and assistant coach Chhay Monasika, along with CSTF president Sor Sithy and CSTF secretary-general Yit Phirak as deputy head of the delegation.
The 12 athletes are Yi Sasarith, Kan Sophoan, Dim Sam Sochea Phearun, Say Sochetra, On Sambath, John Mada, Khi Meng Chuong, Met Marayan, Chan Chiao Huoy, Yean Sokhoeun, Ho Srey Nouch and Khun Chanrosika. They will compete in singles men’s and women’s matches and doubles men’s and women’s matches.
CSTF deputy secretary-general Khorn Sath Sanita said the dispatch was at the invitation of the International Soft Tennis Federation, after Cambodia failed to participate in the tournament since 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sanita said that before heading to Japan this year, the soft tennis team trained hard to be able to achieve their goal of winning two gold medals at the SEA Games to be hosted by Cambodia this May, in line with the target set by CAMSOC. The competition in Japan is very important for the national team to prepare for the upcoming biennial multi-sports event.
“This is an important competition to win a world ranking, where our athletes will have to compete with strong athletes from many countries. In this tournament, they will be able to gain new experiences, especially to measure their abilities to better prepare and fight for gold medals in May’s SEA Games,” she told The Post on February 8.
Meanwhile, a team of 15 Cambodian wheelchair basketballers with five coaches and officials are also set to participate in the JENESYS 2023 para-athlete exchange programme.
The Japanese embassy in Phnom Penh will hold a departure ceremony for the wheelchair basketball team at the official residence its ambassador on the afternoon of February 10.
At the ceremony, newly appointed Japanese envoy Atsushi Ueno and Ly Thuch – senior minister and first vice-president of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) – will both speak and offer words of encouragement to the team.
“The JENESYS programme aims to promote understanding and build mutual trust among the people of Japan and the participating countries and build the foundation of future cooperation and friendships. Through this programme, Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has invited more than 2,100 young Cambodians to participate since 2007,” the embassy said in a press release.
