Paris Olympics, the world’s largest and foremost sporting event in the limelight, will start in late July. 33-year-old Andy, who graduated as a probationary inspector last month, was a windsurfing expert and has represented Hong Kong in major international competitions, including the Olympic Games and Asian Games.

Andy comes from a fisherman’s family, and his life is bound to the sea. “Queen of the Wind” Lee Lai-shan winning Hong Kong’s first Olympic gold medal set off a craze for learning windsurfing. The eight-year-old Andy was one of the learners. Yet he was not enthusiastic about it at first. “I needed to cope with difficulties alone in the vast sea at such a young age. I only continued the training to keep company with my congenial classmates.”

Because of his training since childhood, Andy has learned solving problems more independently than his peers. He soon rose to prominence at a young age through joining the Hong Kong team for the first time when he was 13. Five years later, he was crowned the world youth champion. In the next few years, Andy won the Hong Kong East Asian Games and Asian Championships. In 2012, he stepped onto the top stage for athletes - London Olympics.

Despite his rich experience in international competitions, it wasn’t until joining the Olympics that Andy realised its passionate atmosphere outweighed other international competitions. In general windsurfing races, only a few people watched by the sea and the competition was rarely broadcast live. In Olympics, on the contrary, not only were the shores of the games filled with crowds of spectators, friends in Hong Kong also watched the games live, and his parents went to the UK to cheer him on. In the end, he outdid himself and finished the race in the 13th place. “It was overwhelming and very exciting for me to wear the Hong Kong team uniform and receive the cheers of the audience at the opening and closing ceremonies with athletes from all over the world. It’s a memory of a lifetime.”

Andy did not stop striving after the Olympics. He reaped the silver medal at the Incheon Asian Games in 2014. Two years later, he won the World Windsurfing Championships. While his career had reached the peak, Andy began to plan for the future. “I had been a full-time athlete since I was very young, so my life seemed to be about windsurfing only. I wanted to discover more possibilities.”

In 2018, he got back to his study, aiming to equip himself with a degree. Andy once served as the coach of the Hong Kong youth team. Later he decided to apply for joining the Force. “This is more than a job. It is very meaningful to work on the front line to help the public.”

In 2021, he applied for probationary inspector but failed in the second round of assessment. Later, he applied again through the Sportsmen’s Programme for Recruitment Experience And Development and was finally admitted for training at the Police College. Andy believes that athletes must face setbacks and overcome adversity all the time. Only by persevering to the end can they get on the podium. This perseverance is also helpful for police work.

Having started sailing in a new direction, Andy said, “The scope of policing work is extremely diverse, but this is exactly the new goal that I pursue and expect. I hope to seize the opportunities to utilise my abilities in other aspects and contribute to society.”