HANGZHOU – With a patient yet aggressive approach, Ngo Lan Huong delivered Singapore’s first Asian Games xiangqi medal on Saturday.
In the seventh and final round of the women’s individual event at the Hangzhou Qiyuan Chess Hall, the 43-year-old beat Vietnam’s Nguyen Hoang Yen to take her tally to 10 points and finish third out of 13 exponents, ahead of Malaysia’s Jee Xin Ru by two points.
The finalists were decided after the sixth round on Friday, and China’s Zuo Wenjing defeated compatriot Wang Linna to claim gold. Fiona Tan, Singapore’s other representative, finished 11th.
A bashful Ngo said: “I’m very happy to deliver this medal. It was not easy because there are top players here. I made a few bad moves against Zuo earlier and didn’t play well but she is the world champion and was expected to win.
“Today, I knew I had to win because the scores were very tight and I would lose the medal even with a draw. That’s why I tried to attack, but with such high stakes, I was nervous and took some time to make my moves. Fortunately, she was in the same situation, which perhaps affected her more than me, and I capitalised.”
Xiangqi is a two-player strategy board game that is similar to international chess.
Over five days in Hangzhou, Ngo also recorded wins against Thailand’s Suratsada Promsirinimit, compatriot Tan and Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Phi Liem, and draws against Wang and Malaysia’s Jee, with one loss to Zuo.
Ngo, who was born in Vietnam, started representing her country of birth at 14 after learning how to play from her elderly neighbours, and has over 20 years of professional playing experience.
She married former Singapore player Anthony Kng in 2012, moved to the Republic in 2015 and became a citizen six years later. Despite a seven-year hiatus to raise their daughter, the former world championship silver medallist retained her Midas touch.
Convinced to make a comeback when xiangqi made its debut at the SEA Games in 2022, she won a silver and bronze in Hanoi, and also finished third at the 2022 world championships before clinching an unprecedented SEA Games gold in Phnom Penh in May.
Ngo had issues with her hotel room pillow in Cambodia then, but had no such problems in Hangzhou. While she did find the weather here chilly, it has not affected her form.
In the past few months, she prepared for this meet by training more than 10 hours in person and online per week, and will now look ahead to the world championships in the United States in November.
Singapore Xiangqi General Association vice-president Benny Chow hopes Ngo’s exploits can spur a new generation of players.
He said: “This medal means a lot to us because we were very hungry to win it even against tough opposition. We hope this will help promote xiangqi in Singapore and more of the younger generation will be interested to get involved in this game.”
Meanwhile, 1.3m Zuo was also inspirational as she stood tall on the podium despite having dwarfism.
The 29-year-old was three when she was diagnosed with achondroplasia, but when her xiangqi talent was discovered at age eight, her parents moved from Shandong to Wuhan to seek coaching from international grandmaster Liu Dahua. In 2022, she was crowned world champion.
Zuo thanked table tennis legend Ding Ning, whom she scored a wefie with at the athletes’ village. She said: “I was nervous before we won the mixed team gold and I couldn’t help but ask her what would you do in such a situation.
“She told me without calmness, defeat is certain. I tried to keep this in mind, which has helped me a lot, and I want to thank her.”
In the men’s individual final, Zheng Weitong beat Zhao Xinxin in an all-China affair, while Vietnam’s Lai Ly Huynh earned the bronze. Singapore’s Low Yi Hao and Alvin Woo finished fourth and 10th respectively out of 18 exponents.
