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Read about our Competitor from Bahrain, and his sponsor, Gulf Air.
Malaysian daily paper, The Star - 27th October, 2006
Australia, here we come!
By HENRY YEO
The selection process finally ended last month and we have assembled a team for the World Youth Scrabble Championship (WYSC), which will be held in Wollongong, Australia, in December. Although the dates of the championship may prevent many of our senior students from attending – since the SPM examinations are held at the same time – we are fortunate to have many quality players among the junior students.
Spearheading the Malaysian challenge are Ong Suanne and Gan Yi En. Joining them in Wollongong are Loh Vern Sern, Khoo Beng Way, Sean Chung, Chin Hon Yew, Alex Hong Wern Juin, Brian Lim Daqing, Ian Tay Zhi Xian and Wendy Lee Suk Ling. Ong Suanne has always been the perennial star of the Scrabble tournament circuit since her debut in 2000 at the tender age of seven years old. Over the years, this petite Penangite has managed to hone her game-play and strategy against local masters and veteran players, culminating in her selection to the 2005 Causeway Scrabble Challenge. Not only did she make her debut as the youngest ever representative, she also finished 10th on her maiden performance, outperforming many of the top grandmasters from the South-East Asian region.
Gan Yi En was a member of the St Francis Institute’s first team (2004’s Farbucks and 2005 Moonbucks) that dominated the Interschool Scrabble Championship. Now, this top student is pursuing his education at a private college (under a government scholarship) and still finds time to test his mettle in local tournaments with the aim of qualifying to represent Malaysia at the World Scrabble Championship or the Causeway Scrabble Challenge. He qualified for the WYSC by winning the first Malaysian Youth Scrabble Championship in August.
Loh Vern Sern, another Penangite, was promoted to master’s rank last year and is developing his game against top players. The experience that he garnered from the Penang Open Scrabble Tournament earlier this year helped him dominate the MYSC play-offs last month to finish with a 14-1 record.
Sean Chung (with siblings, Kelly and Scott) and his cousin Khoo Beng Way are out to prove that good Scrabbling runs in their family since Scrabble has always been encouraged by their families and has even helped them bond together.
SMK Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar in Johor has been producing top junior players for the past three years and fielding teams that perform well in the Interschool Scrabble Championship, including the reigning U-15 division champion team, SPEC 15s. The institution will be very proud to have Chin Hon Yew, Alex Hong Wern Juin, Brian Lim Daqing and Ian Tay Zhi Xian represent Malaysia in the WYSC.
Wendy Lee Suk Ling is the other man-eater on this team. Since making a splash in her debut performance on the local tournament circuit, she has continued to wow veteran players with her intensity and game-play. This young woman is out to prove that she deserves her place on the team (despite a recent slump in form during the qualifiers) and intends to outperform anyone and everyone.
To all the juniors on the WYSC team, we wish you all the best of luck and may you all perform well!
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