Chinese Taipei’s Shen Sin Ai – I did not expect that I will be the first gold medallist from my country
Chinese Taipei’s new sensation, Shen Sin Ai was their first finalist in the ASBC Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships in Astana. The 16-year-old talent had to meet for the gold medal a local rival, Kazakhstan’s Sila Bibolsynkyzy. Shen used her strategy better in the second round than in the first and she had some advantages on the judges’ scorecards after two minutes.
Chinese Taipei’s new pride opened the last round with quick jabs but Bibolsynkyzy replied also to her actions in this exciting light flyweight (48kg) final. Shen Sin Ai was slightly better in their final and she became Chinese Taipei’s first ever winner in the history of the ASBC Asian Junior Boxing Championships.
Shen Sin Ai made this historic result after her hard work in the gym and she replied to all of the ASBC’s questions in a specific interview.
How did you start your boxing career?
When I was in the third grade in the elementary school, I passed by the coach’s boxing gym. My mother was asking me if I have any interest to join to a training session. I thought that it looked interesting, so I signed up for a children’s boxing class once a week. At first it was just a playing for me but after that I participated also in the sparring training sessions as well. When I was at the fifth grade in the elementary school, I switched to badminton and I was afraid of the pain of the punches. Before one of the national boxing competitions in the first grade of junior high school, my coach asked me to join back to the sport. Unexpectedly I won that national championships and I was no longer afraid of boxing and increased my practice in the gym.
Who was the biggest influence in your boxing career?
My coach Mr. He Chun De is my biggest influencer; without him I would have given up boxing long time ago.
Could you please introduce your average training and working day?
We are not training with the school team so we can use our spare time to do our sessions. My coach is responsible for the schedule according to the situation and the preparation plans but we work together every day twice and also at the holidays and weekends. I start my day at 6am and finish all workouts and duties at 10pm.
Do you have any specific training methods?
We are concentrating to the good eating, enough sleeping and the hard working every day based on my coach’s schedule. We are trying to keep the focus on all of them.
What were your plans before the start of the Asian Youth & Junior Boxing Championships?
I was planning to control my weight during the entire championships and stay in good condition in all of the competition days.
How did you feel yourself in Astana?
I was very nervous during the championships as this was my first competition out of Chinese Taipei but I hoped that I will be able to win the gold medal.
What was your most difficult contest in Astana?
The semi-final contest against the Indian was the most difficult for me, it was not so easy to keep my footwork and the tactics.
How does it feel to be the first from Chinese Taipei to win an Asian Junior gold medal?
I am very happy of course, and I did not expect that I would be the first from my country, it was highly unexpected.
Which will be your next competition? What are your future plans in boxing?
I will be there at the Junior World Boxing Championships in the upcoming weeks. My plan is to keep the training hard and I hope I will be able to win an Olympic gold medal in the future as an elite boxer.
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