World wushu champion Cheong Min carries on family's legacy in cooking

KUALA LUMPUR: Although she is well known for her prowess in martial arts, Tan Cheong Min also has a feminine side as she loves cooking very much.

The world of cooking is nothing new to the world wushu champion, as she started in the kitchen at the age of 10 to help her mother, Goh Swee Lian, 49, prepare various dishes for the family.

She also inherited talent from her father Tan Poh Chuan, 50, who is also a chef and has opened a family cafe in Melaka.

With her skills, Cheong Min is carrying on her family's legacy as she is now able to prepare different types of dishes, but her favourite is cooking with steam every time she enters the kitchen.

"I really like to eat, so when I was in primary school, when I was 10 years old, I started going to the kitchen and helping my mother cook, along with my other siblings. After all, my father is a chef who opened TFC Home Cafe in Melaka about six years ago.

"However, I only cook when I am at home in Melaka. In Kuala Lumpur, I live in an athletes' hostel in Bukit Jalil. So I cannot use cooking utensils. When I return, I always cook steamed chicken and fish according to the family recipe," she told Bernama.

Despite her busy wushu training schedule, Cheong Min, from Tanjung Minyak, who started the sport at the age of nine, said she would try to steal time to learn recipes of her family's heritage.

As for preparations for the Asian Games, 25-year-old Cheong Min said she is currently undergoing rehabilitation treatment at the National Sports Institute (ISN) after sustaining an old right ankle injury during a training session about five years ago.

However, she considered the matter as part of her career as an athlete and is still ready to fight to the end at the quadrennial multi-sport event in China.

"The current preparations have reached 70 to 80 per cent. However, I have doctor's permission to compete in the Games as the condition of my injury has improved after taking medication.

"Now I have to try to recover and be in the best condition. I cannot make any mistakes because the Asian Games stage is big and the competition is really big," she said.

Cheong Min, who was previously in a class of her own after winning two gold medals in the Taolu (Nandao + Nangun) and Nanquan disciplines at the 2023 SEA Games in Cambodia, will use this victory as a motivation to stand proudly on the podium in China.

The 2022 Asian Games will be held in Hangzhou, China, from Sept 23 to Oct 8 and Cheong Min will compete in two disciplines there, namely Nanquan and Nando.

Profile:

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Name: Tan Cheong Min

Age: 25 tahun

Hometown: Tanjung Minyak, Melaka

Number of siblings: Four (second child)

Hobby: Cooking

Best achievements: Gold medal in the Duilian discipline at the World Championships in Russia 2017 and gold medal in the Nandao discipline at the World Championships in China 2019.

-- BERNAMA