Be's long journey to Delhi
Triumph through adversity ... Vannara Be has risen from grape farming to gold medal-hunting. (Getty Images)
Laine Clark
World Wide Of Sports
Fri Oct 1 2010
It was a big surprise to Vannara Be (pictured) when told he was the first Cambodian-born athlete to represent Australia.
But the real shock came when Be detailed what his family went through before he could earn a little slice of history.
The 22-year-old weightlifter reckons his mum and dad were over the moon when he earned his historic nod for the Delhi Commonwealth Games.
But Be's thoughts turned to the family members who weren't there to toast his success.
"My dad went through Pol Pot. He has mental (suffering). My aunt and uncle were murdered (by the Khmer Rouge) and my grandmother lost an eye," Be said on Friday.
Another uncle fled the horror of the Khmer Rouge' bloody reign and arrived in Australia as a refugee by boat. Fifteen years later Be's father followed.
"Dad came here in 1996 to visit his brother and just to work and get some money for us," Be said.
"He worked at a vineyard in Yarra Valley (Victoria). His boss liked him and asked if he wanted to stay in Australia.
"He said he would only stay if the whole family was here, so his boss sponsored all of us over here."
By 1998, a 10-year-old Be arrived with his mother, three sisters and no real idea of what to expect.
"I couldn't speak a word of English. It was pretty hard for me," said Be with a slight Aussie twang.
But he picked up the Aussie way of life pretty quickly.
Be is the first to admit he only took up weightlifting at Mount Lilydale Mercy College in Melbourne's north "to get out of school".
"Yeah that is a pretty Australian thing to do," Be laughed.
"To get out of school work you play different sports. (At his school) you have days when you have competition and then you get the rest of the day off."
No one in his family had taken up the sport before but Be's training started at an early age.
"Mum had a shop in Cambodia. I kind of helped them out lifting things here and there," he said.
"It was the same when I came here during picking season (at Yarra Valley), you have to carry grapes around in a bucket, it's pretty heavy.
"I am not too sure where I got my strength from, maybe from there."
An hour-long drive from the Yarra Valley to Melbourne's Hawthorn weightlifting club didn't deter Be and a hobby became a passion.
His sister Socheata also caught the bug.
Suddenly Be was good enough to represent Australia. But red tape proved just as challenging as his weights as he sweated on gaining Australian citizenship.
After arriving on a work visa, Be's family went through a painstaking process to gain permanent residency before applying for citizenship.
"I could have represented Australia a long time ago but because the citizenship didn't come through it has been slow," Be said. "I became an Australian citizen last November just in time for the Games."
Be's place in history was sealed when he earned selection in the 62kg class for Delhi.
Be looked twice at Australian chef de mission Steve Moneghetti at Friday's press conference when he was unveiled as the first Cambodian-born Australian athlete.
"I just found out today," Be beamed. "It's a dream come true to represent the country that you want to be in."
But the real shock came when Be detailed what his family went through before he could earn a little slice of history.
The 22-year-old weightlifter reckons his mum and dad were over the moon when he earned his historic nod for the Delhi Commonwealth Games.
But Be's thoughts turned to the family members who weren't there to toast his success.
"My dad went through Pol Pot. He has mental (suffering). My aunt and uncle were murdered (by the Khmer Rouge) and my grandmother lost an eye," Be said on Friday.
Another uncle fled the horror of the Khmer Rouge' bloody reign and arrived in Australia as a refugee by boat. Fifteen years later Be's father followed.
"Dad came here in 1996 to visit his brother and just to work and get some money for us," Be said.
"He worked at a vineyard in Yarra Valley (Victoria). His boss liked him and asked if he wanted to stay in Australia.
"He said he would only stay if the whole family was here, so his boss sponsored all of us over here."
By 1998, a 10-year-old Be arrived with his mother, three sisters and no real idea of what to expect.
"I couldn't speak a word of English. It was pretty hard for me," said Be with a slight Aussie twang.
But he picked up the Aussie way of life pretty quickly.
Be is the first to admit he only took up weightlifting at Mount Lilydale Mercy College in Melbourne's north "to get out of school".
"Yeah that is a pretty Australian thing to do," Be laughed.
"To get out of school work you play different sports. (At his school) you have days when you have competition and then you get the rest of the day off."
No one in his family had taken up the sport before but Be's training started at an early age.
"Mum had a shop in Cambodia. I kind of helped them out lifting things here and there," he said.
"It was the same when I came here during picking season (at Yarra Valley), you have to carry grapes around in a bucket, it's pretty heavy.
"I am not too sure where I got my strength from, maybe from there."
An hour-long drive from the Yarra Valley to Melbourne's Hawthorn weightlifting club didn't deter Be and a hobby became a passion.
His sister Socheata also caught the bug.
Suddenly Be was good enough to represent Australia. But red tape proved just as challenging as his weights as he sweated on gaining Australian citizenship.
After arriving on a work visa, Be's family went through a painstaking process to gain permanent residency before applying for citizenship.
"I could have represented Australia a long time ago but because the citizenship didn't come through it has been slow," Be said. "I became an Australian citizen last November just in time for the Games."
Be's place in history was sealed when he earned selection in the 62kg class for Delhi.
Be looked twice at Australian chef de mission Steve Moneghetti at Friday's press conference when he was unveiled as the first Cambodian-born Australian athlete.
"I just found out today," Be beamed. "It's a dream come true to represent the country that you want to be in."
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