Monash ice hockey star wins MVP honour
Marcus Wong
Monash student Marcus Wong was awarded the Most Valuable Player title for Australia at the recent International Ice Hockey Federation games in Estonia.
Marcus, who is in the second year of his Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering/Science degree, at the Clayton campus said that receiving the award was something he will never forget.
“Winning the Most Valuable Player award is a great achievement, but I couldn’t have done it without my teammates. Hockey is a team sport, so no matter how well an individual plays, it is always the team that succeeds,” Marcus said.
The competition was fierce and Australia finished fifth, winning only to Mexico with a final score of 4-1. Consisting of six teams - Romania, Estonia, Belgium, Australia, Serbia and Mexico - the tournament was a round robin format, with each team playing the others once.
Being able to beat Mexico ensured that the team was able to remain in the same division for next year.
The World Junior U20 Championships Division II team consists of 20 players from around Australia. To prepare for the event the team trained up to eight times per week on and off the ice. They also attended a week-long training camp in Finland before travelling to the Championships in Tallinn, Estonia.
“With all the training and the travelling, the Monash Elite Athlete program has supported me greatly with getting leave from classes that clashed with my sporting commitments,” Marcus said.
“Without the support of the program, I wouldn’t have settled into university life so easily.”
Encouraged by his strong performance, Marcus, who also plays for the Melbourne Ice men’s team, is already looking forward to next year’s competition.
“Competing against the best players from other countries has given me further insight into improving my game and I’m looking forward to leading the new players into the next championships,” Marcus said.