Lee Ki is one of Hong Kong’s most accomplished basketball players. He is also a coach for ELCHK Lutheran Secondary School.
The 38-year-old is passionate about helping students believe in themselves through sports.
“I hope that students who lack motivation ... can learn to face failure, identify their weaknesses and focus on a goal,” said Lee, who is also a physical education (PE) teacher at the school.
In 2015, Lee joined the Hong Kong Eastern Basketball Team, a professional basketball club known as the Eastern Long Lions. As the team’s captain, he led them to win their first Asean Basketball League championship title in 2017.
But his rise to success might never have happened without his secondary school’s PE teacher, who inspired him to pursue his basketball dreams. Ever since becoming a full-time teacher in 2021, he hopes to do the same for the next generation.
This year, both the boys’ and girls’ basketball teams at ELCHK Lutheran Secondary School achieved a breakthrough. Both teams qualified for Division One in the Inter-School Basketball Competition. Competition will be tough in this group, but Lee hopes the teams will try their best.
“Even if our boys and girls may not be able to compete with the traditional elite schools ... they don’t give up playing,” he said.
Lessons learned
Form Five student Ray Lin Bai-rui, who started playing basketball in primary school, said that the sport built his self-confidence.
“Playing the sport made me realise what I was capable of. On the court, I feel free,” the 18-year-old said.
“If you can be disciplined with yourself in basketball, then you will apply that same demanding standard to your studies or anything else you do.”
Wong Hoi-shan, the PE teacher who coached the girls’ squad, said the team trained intensely, and in her second year as a coach, they won the runner-up title.
“When they achieved that, they felt that their hard work had genuinely paid off. That success began to inspire the younger students, and the squad has continued to grow ever since,” she said.
Female basketball player Wong Hin-yu, 16, said that playing sports strengthened her mindset.
“You won’t know the outcome until the very last second,” she said. “As long as you believe in yourself, believe in your teammates and trust the coach’s strategy, we can all achieve our own success.”
Balancing sports and school
Because of the lack of resources for basketball in Hong Kong, Lee makes sure his student-athletes do not ignore their studies.
“We hope they can find a balance between studying and playing sports,” he said.
“At least, when they go to university, they will have more choices for the future. Otherwise, if you purely play basketball and aren’t one of the absolute top players, your future options will be very narrow.”
He added that even if students became professional athletes, their careers might only last until their 30s.
This is why the school’s principal, Liang Kwun-fan, hopes to show pupils different sports careers. For instance, the school invited companies to teach students about organising sports events.
“Students realise they can pursue careers in related fields like sports photography,” he said.
“[We hope] students can see that their growth in sports and their journey can lead to a wider range of future paths.”
