Hong Kong Youth Wins World Juggling Championships With A Kendama
The IJA Festival, hosted by the 75-year-old International Jugglers’ Association (IJA), is a grand 7-day juggling industry event. The Festival took place in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in mid-July this year. There were eight performers on stage every day, and thousands of people in attendance watching the performances.
22-year-old Hong Kong youth, Pu Ho Lam, participated in the competition with a kendama as his juggling prop; immediately standing out from the competition.
“The audience was very enthusiastic, and when the music played and before the performance officially started, they already gave me cheers. When I completed a beautiful movement, they would applaud and cheer. Everyone was very engaged, especially after the performance, when the audience stood up and clapped, I was so surprised!”
Many of the contestants were talented and some of them have set Guinness World Records. But Pu didn’t let that get to him.
“My attitude was to ‘enjoy the stage,’ if I keep thinking about whether I could win or lose, then I put too much pressure on myself.”
After the performance, Ho Lam left the stage feeling like a winner just from the crowds reactions but then there was another unexpected surprise, the judges announced his score, and he was the 2022 IJA Juggling Championships Champ!
“It was a dream come true. My head was blank, I didn’t know what to think so I just went on to accept everyone’s applause. I was humbled b/c I was already happy just to be there and be able to perform on the international stage level but winning was truly a bonus.
And although Ho Lam did not have his family and friends with him when he won the trophy in America, Niels Duinker, a juggler who holds 8 Guinness World Records, took the initiative to congratulate him on winning the award. This overwhelmed him. He said,
“I watched Niels’s video when I started learning juggling. I wouldn’t be a good juggler without him!”
Ho Lam happily took a photo with Niels and had a brief exchange with him. Niels also gave his autograph on the KendamaUSA Kendama which he used in the competition. This experience became his precious memory of that day.
The short trip to Cedar Rapids was an eye-opener for Ho Lam. He not only witnessed in person the performances of jugglers from all over the world but it also inspired him to continue on his journey. Now he is studying a Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering at the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong and is working in the field.
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Sources:
Zeng, Jenny. (2022, September 28). Hong Kong Performer Wins World Juggling Championships Despite a Bumpy Road? The Epoch Times.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/hong-kong-youth-wins-world-juggling-championships-despite-a-bumpy-road_4759764.html
