Chris Leung-Chee-Hang dodges his way to the WDBF World Championships

Monash’s own Dodgeball Club President and Coach Christopher Leung-Chee-Hang represented Australia at the 2019 WDBF World Championships in Mexico in November, following a rigorous selection process.

The Australian team came fourth in the competition in Cancun, after being defeated by Canada in the bronze medal match following a strong start to the competition.

Chris, a fourth year Electrical Engineering and Commerce student, came from a tennis background. He only began playing dodgeball in his first year of university after chatting with a friend at the dodgeball stand during O Week.

Chris said he was unable to attend the tryout day for the Australian team

selection camp, so he was chosen based on a video he sent of himself

competing in a dodgeball competition. 

Photo: Australian Dodgeball Federation. 

“From tennis, I think having a good shoulder and arm has helped me a lot, and also the footwork,” Chris said.

“With dodgeball, if you play any other sport there’s always something that’s transferrable to one facet of the game.”

To make the Australian National Dodgeball team, Chris first had to apply by sending in a video of himself playing. From there, 50 athletes were invited to attend a selection camp at AIS, and the team was gradually cut down until the final 12 team members were announced in July.

Chris said he had never competed at this level before, and his goal for the competition was to gain experiences which he can use in his role as president of the Monash University Dodgeball Association (MUDA).

MUDA is a relatively new addition to Monash’s various sporting teams, becoming an affiliated club with the University in 2018.

MUDA teams won Gold and Bronze at Dodgeball Federation Australia's 

University Championships earlier this year.

Photo: Sagar Jamini, Australian Dodgeball Federation. 

Chris said he is often asked how competitive dodgeball differs from the more relaxed game we all remember from high school PE classes.

“I think the physicality of the sport is a lot more different when you’re playing seriously. A lot of people get injuries doing things their body has never done before, especially in the dodging component, where you’re trained to do anything to get out of the way,” he said.

“Besides that, there’s a lot more structure to the play. In the more competitive style of play there’s a lot of strategy that goes on behind the scenes, a lot of counter playing to that, and then counter-counter play. It becomes a whole mind game in the end, of who’s going to do what.”

Although some dodgeball competitors may be stronger in certain skill sets, such as throwing, Chris said he would consider himself an all-rounder. He plays the wing position, covering the far right or far left of the court.

Monash Alumni Ashley Chan was also selected to represent Australia

at the 2019 WDBF World Championships.

“Because this is somewhat the safest position on court, you’re given quite a lot of responsibility in protecting the rest of the team. So I found that being an all-rounder has helped in that role,” he said.

“The other teams know that you’re important, and then it becomes a bit of a mind game again. Are they going to target you, or target players that are easier to get?”

Training for competitive dodgeball involves gameplay, fitness training, and technical training, such as finessing dodging skills and throw speed.

Well done Chris, we can’t wait to see where dodgeball takes you next!

Written by Nell O’Shea Carre, Media Coordinator.