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A day before the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games ends on Sunday, Jimmy Wan Chi-Man's Zero to Hero, a biopic about So Wa Wai, Hong Kong's first Paralympic athlete to win gold, will be released in the Chinese mainland after proving an unexpected success in the local Hong Kong film market.
The film tells the true story of So, who was born in Hong Kong in 1981 with jaundice, affecting his hearing and mobility. However, his illness didn't deter him from training to become a talented track and field athlete.
The film focuses on his relationship with his mother, played by renowned Hong Kong actress Sandra Ng, and how she loved and sacrificed for her son, encouraging him to achieve his athletic dreams.
Over his inspiring athletic journey, the real-life So raced for Hong Kong in five Paralympic Games from 1996 to 2012, winning 12 medals in total, including six golds. He remains the world record holder in the men's T-36 in the 100m and 200m disciplines.
In 2008, he especially dreamed of winning a glorious victory in China, and he succeeded. In the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, he won gold in the men's T-36 200m sprint, setting a new world record, which he holds to this day. It was the last gold he would secure. He retired in 2016, at which point he joined a local sports association to train other disabled athletes.
Zero to Hero also touches upon another issue faced by So and other disabled athletes – earning sports titles doesn't usually come with significant economic benefits. They also face grimmer prospects after retirement, as medal award bonuses and government subsidies for disabled athletes are not as high as for regular athletes. Many don't even have the money to treat injuries that can arise from long-term training.
The real So Wa Wai crosses the finish line during the men's T-36 200m sprint, winning gold and breaking the world record at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. [Photo/Xinhua]
The biopic met with numerous rejections from investors over the past decade until Hong Kong actor and producer Louis Koo said he was touched by the story, agreeing to invest in the project and inviting Sandra Ng to be the executive producer and leading actress in the film. Ng and Koo hope the film can appeal to disabled groups and raise awareness about the plight of disabled athletes.
As proof of its appeal, the film has since gone from zero to hero” – finding little success starting out but since winning at the box office. By the end of last week, the film became the most profitable Chinese-language film of the summer with total box office takings of HK$17.55 million in the Hong Kong regional market and beat local action blockbuster Raging Fire. Ongoing critical acclaim and positive word-of-mouth reviews from audiences will likely help the film do well upon its release in the mainland market Saturday.
