The national wushu team stepped up their preparation for the 27th edition of Southeast Asian (SEA) Games as they left the country yesterday for China.
Accompanied by national wushu coach Li Hui, Faustina Woo Wai Sii and brothers Mohd Adi Syarani and Mohd Sufi Shayiran Roslan will be in China's province of Zhe Jiang for the 20-days-training spell.
"Why I choose to train in Zhe Jiang is simply because they have got one of the best wushu in the world, especially in duilian (duo sparring with broadsword and spear) event, and Brunei is also strong in duilian," said coach Li in an interview with The Brunei Times prior to their departure at the Brunei International Airport, Berakas.
"We will be training with some of the world champions, I am hoping that we will be able to learn from them and sharpen our technique, speed and movement," added the coach.
Ang Guat Lian and Lee Ying Shi will fly to China to join the team on Wednesday.
Arguably one of the best wushu exponents in the country, Woo believes that training with the world's best will help the team be ready for December's SEA Games in Myanmar.
"I am very sure that we will improve more if we train with the world champions as we are learning from the best, so it is very important that we are getting this intensive training especially when we are going to compete in a big tournament such as SEA Games," said Woo.
The 21-year-old will also be undergoing a treatment for her right knee.
"I injured my left knee during training a long time ago and the pain keeps coming back, so I will take this opportunity to go for treatment," she added.
Meanwhile brothers Mohd Adi Syarani and Mohd Sufi Shayiran are excited to return to China for training.
"We have been to China many times and we enjoyed the training there. It was hard and tough, but at the same time it was fun," said Mohd Sufi Shayiran.
"Moreover we find it easy to focus on training in China as there are no distractions. Sometimes, we cannot focus and give our 100 per cent when training in Brunei, as we have other commitments and responsibilities, but in China there is no excuse as we have the whole day to ourselves for training," he added. "Coach Liu told us that we will be having training three-times a day in Zhe Jiang. It will be very intense, but we are ready for it."
