Olympic swimmer lights up OCA Youth Reporter Project

Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Oct 22, 2013: Cambodia’s two-time Olympic Games swimmer Hem Thon Vitiny was the special guest at the OCA Youth Reporter Project at the new NOC Cambodia offices in the capital Phnom Penh on Monday morning.

The 20-year-old freestyle specialist, who represented the Kingdom in the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympic Games, was a top-table guest at the opening ceremony and then took centre stage for the press conference exercise.

During a 20-minute question and answer session with the Youth Reporter Project students, Vitiny provided an insight into the motivation and the training required to become an Olympian, not once but twice, and said she planned to continue swimming for six more years before becoming a coach and helping develop the sport in the Kingdom.

The students used the information from the press conference, as well as the biography and list of achievements provided during the workshop, to write an article on Vitiny in a one-hour exercise.

From an entry of 37, a final four emerged and the winner was declared as Tieng Kimleng, 15, from Cambodia International Academy First International School.

“Any of the last four was good enough to win, but the deciding factor was that Tieng Kimleng used some of her very interesting comments from the press conference as direct quotes in his article,” the OCA said in a statement to local media.

“This lifted the article from a school essay-style to more like a newspaper story with a beginning, good comments from the athlete and an end. All the important information was there and the key facts were correct.”

Kimleng will now be invited to be part of the OCA media team at the 17th Asian Games in Incheon, Korea, from September 19 to October 4, 2014.

“I am very excited about going to Korea,” he said. “I have never been there before, and never even been to Thailand, so this is amazing to go there and watch the Asian Games.

“It was great to meet the famous swimmer Hem Thon Vitiny this morning. I will follow her and support her even more closely now we have had the chance to meet her and ask her questions.

“She has really set a good example for all athletes as well as the future generation who want to compete in the Olympic Games.”

Kimleng, who was accompanied by his father Tieng Kung, received his prizes from the NOCC President, HE Dr Thong Khon, who is also Minister of Tourism. —- OCA

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