The 27th to Russia with love

Summer Universiade (World University Games) have kicked off in Kazan, Russia and four University of Melbourne athletes are representing Australia as part of the UniRoos squad.

Badminton player Luke Chong, tennis player Sam Thompson and table tennis team members Barak Mizrachi and Tim Nguyen will be hoping to add to the medal tally, which peaked at 16 in China in 2011, Australia’s highest tally to date.

Masters of Construction student Tim Nguyen says he was happy and excited when he found out he had been selected for Australia’s table tennis team.

“My dad got me into it when I was about nine or 10 years old; I’m the first person in my family to play, but my whole family really enjoys sport,” he says.

And while he says it’s a great honour to be able to represent Australia, he is realistic about the competition they will be facing.

“It’s the toughest level that all of us have played at, so if we can get through a few rounds we’ll be pretty happy.”

Joining Mr Ngyuen at the table is Chemical Engineering graduate, Barak Mizrachi. 

Having won dual goal medals at the 2011 Oceania Paralympic Championships, Mr Mizrachi isn’t new to tough competition on an international stage. But the 27th Summer Universiade in Russia will be the highest international level he has competed at, and he will be breaking a record as the first athlete with a disability to represent Australia at the games.

“I found out [I was the first] after I’d been selected. It’s nice, but it isn’t why I wanted to do it,” he says.

“It shouldn’t matter if you have a disability or not, if you are good enough, you’re good enough, there shouldn’t be a segregation based on having a disability.”

As they prepare for their first match Mr Mizrachi says the excitement is building up.

“I’ve never played against people who are in the top 20 and top 100 in the world; I’ve never played against that calibre.”

After competing at the Kazan University games Mizrachi will travel to Israel to compete in his third Maccabiah Games.

“I can’t see myself ever stopping playing, I’d just like to keep playing at a high level for as long as I can,” he says. 

Badminton player Luke Chong and tennis player Sam Thompson also have ambitions to further their sporting careers.

Luke Chong is studying a PhD in Optometry and when he’s not researching for his degree he’s practising badminton. Mr Chong hopes to one day represent Australia at the Olympic or Commonwealth games, but for now he is balancing the challenges of being a post-graduate research student and an athlete.

“Trying to fit in training and travelling overseas for competitions with university commitments can be tough, you have to make sacrifices, such as not hanging out with friends as much,” says Mr Chong.

“I feel really excited and honoured to be able to represent my country at such a big international sporting event.

“I'm looking forward to staying in the athlete village and meeting athletes from different sports and countries and, of course, playing some good badminton against the world's best.

“It will be tough to win, but if I can get a medal of any colour I’ll be very happy.”

Tennis player and Bachelor of Science student Sam Thompson is also thrilled to have been selected to play for the Australian team. Mr Thompson started playing Tennis when he was just five years old, but it is only in the past few years that he has begun to compete seriously at higher level tournaments and competitions.

“To be selected for [the University Games] is a huge privilege. When I found out I’d been selected my feelings were a mix of humility and eagerness,” Mr Thompson says.

“Once I complete my final year of study, I intend to take some time off and travel to play tennis. Ideally, this would be a step up into some stronger tournaments and give me the experience of competing on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) tour.” 

Elite Athlete Program Co-ordinator at the University of Melbourne, and Commonwealth Games medallist, Marieke D’Cruz says the University Games are a great opportunity for students who are elite athletes to practise competing at an international level.

“It’s a significant achievement to get into the University Games, it’s very competitive,” Ms D’Cruz says.

“The spirit of competition is a great thing to experience when you are an athlete, so it is like a mini commonwealth games or Olympics in that respect.”

And she says the lessons learned playing sport also help with academic life.

“Sport gives you so much, it teaches you a lot about yourself and it teaches you discipline, time management and determination and this all translates to University studies.”

There are currently 260 students enrolled in the University’s Elite Athlete program, which helps University students balance their academic and sporting commitments.

http://www.sport.unimelb.edu.au/

http://visions.unimelb.edu.au/episode/164

http://youtu.be/DjxhMINVsBk