Bao Bao, Buccaneers & Being Bold
Yuki Ng, Hong Kong
Rugby For Good is Hong Kong's first sports-focused charity that partners with impact-driven organisations to provide innovative play-based programmes, focused on well-being and social inclusion. Since 2013, the organisation has worked with more than 250 schools and 30,000 participants.
My name is NG Hoi Yee, or Yuki. My nickname is Bao Bao. I was born to parents with normal hearing, but I was born deaf and later fitted with a cochlear implant. I studied in mainstream schools, where I learned to communicate by reading other people’s lips. When I was in secondary school I met some deaf friends, and they communicated in sign language. I did not know sign language at that time, but slowly learned more from them.
In 2009, I found out that my friends who study in deaf school had participated in rugby through the school rugby programme, and after that they took part in the Rugby For Good Deaf Rugby Team. In 2016, my friend asked me to volunteer as a photographer for the team. During that period, I took photos of them and captured wonderful memories.
In 2018, I finally joined the Deaf Rugby Team, playing tag rugby. It was the first time I had participated in a tag rugby game. I encountered some difficulties, such as not knowing how to communicate with my teammates as I could not wear my hearing aid. I had to constantly keep my eye on the ball, catch the ball well and focus on pulling the tag off the other players.
After a few months, I changed from tag to touch rugby. Currently, the Hong Kong Rugby Union has a touch rugby course. One of my friends, Tik, invited me to participate in the training together. But it was a hearing group of players. In the process of playing with hearing players, I gained more communication skills and leadership ability (by using my body movements) and I learned a lot of different tactics.
In 2020, I took a youth coaching course, and have continued to teach since then, including SEN (Special Educational Needs) and deaf kids. I chose those groups because I do not pronounce my words very clearly, so I was afraid that normal hearing children may not understand my instructions. But some colleagues encouraged me to teach children more actively and boldly without undermining my abilities.
What did you try to capture with the photos? Was there a wider meaning?
The photos are of our team at training, which were taken at Happy Valley, in Hong Kong. The Buccaneer Team is a hearing group that I play for, and during the competitions I learned some communication strategies from the hearing players. When I joined the team, I read lips, but some of my teammates told me that they would try to continue doing body movements if I did not understand what they were saying.
There is also a photo of two children. They are brothers and their parents are rugby players and it was right before their parents’ rugby training. They sat down and watched their parents’ training while playing by themselves. Having children be involved in sports like this is one way to make sure they will love sports in the future.
I wanted to show that we love rugby, and when we play as a team, we really enjoy it and never give up! When I became a coach, I tried to teach everyone that we all need to work together and believe that we can compete as a team. During our training sessions and when we play in competitions, the most important thing is to maintain enthusiasm!
I took photos of our matches during the summer. It was so hot! I saw everyone sweating a lot but they still insisted on playing. When it was time to have a rest, everybody ran to get a drink of water or refill their water bottle to take the heat off! It shows how much we want to play.
What role does rugby play in your community and Hong Kong society? What are the opportunities for women and girls to play sports?
Anyone can play rugby, since there are so many different positions in rugby, and you can also be a coach. As long as they have the resilience to keep going, there is a place for them.
There are a lot of opportunities for women and girls, but we need to work together to encourage more women to play, regardless of age! To give them the courage to play.
What impact has the Rugby For Good program had on you and your community?
Rugby For Good has helped us to promote more deaf sports to the deaf community. Playing rugby has helped me to become a better person and reach a stronger physical fitness level.
What do you think the future looks like for sport for you and in your community?
I want to continue to challenge myself to rise to the occasion and play as well as I can. I hope that rugby in Hong Kong will see an increase in resources and get more support from wider society.
