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The 2023 Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards Presentation Ceremony was held at the HKSI today, recognising coaches who made outstanding contributions to the development of sports at the elite, community and school levels in 2023.

A record high of 269 nominations were received this year and 213 coaches were recognised under seven award categories including Coach of the Year Awards, Distinguished Services Award for Coaching, Coach Education Award, Best Team Sport Coach Award, Coaching Excellence Awards, Community Coach Recognition Awards and School Coach Recognition Awards.

Mr Wong Chi-cho, Joe JP, Permanent Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism; Ms Donna Tang, Executive Manager, Charities (Sports & Institute of Philanthropy) of The Hong Kong Jockey Club; and Mr Edmond Hung Chor-ying, Chairman of the Hong Kong Coaching Committee (HKCC), officiated at the Presentation Ceremony.

Mr Edmond Hung Chor-ying expressed appreciation to coaches in his welcoming speech, saying, “In 2023, Hong Kong athletes achieved remarkable accomplishments at the World University Games, the Asian Games, the Asian Para Games and many other international competitions. All these cannot be made possible without the tireless effort and nurture from coaches. In addition to elite level, a lot of coaches have made outstanding contributions to the community and schools by laying a solid foundation.” He also thanked The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust for their dedicated support of the HKCC, working hand-in-hand to advance the standard and recognition of Hong Kong coaches in various levels.

The Coach of the Year Awards (COY) have always been the highlight of the presentation ceremony. Fencing coach Gregory Koenig and Para swimming (intellectual disability) coach Leung Shuk-ying were awarded in the senior athletes - individual sport category; Para lawn bowls (physical disability) coach Ng Yu-hin and tenpin bowling coach William Edward Hoffman were honoured in senior athletes - team event category; billiard sports coach Nip Hoi-yan received the award in the junior athletes - individual sport category; while sailing coach Rory James Godman took the award in the junior athletes - team event category. Four out of the six coaches received the COY awards for the first time, demonstrating the rapid development of Hong Kong sport industry.

Coach Gregory Koenig has been awarded the COY title in three consecutive years. He led the Hong Kong men’s foil team to compete at Hangzhou Asian Games. Fencer Cheung Ka-long became the first gold medallist in individual fencing in Hong Kong history at the Asian Games. In the meantime, Choi Chun-yin also won the bronze medal in the same event.  

Para swimming (intellectual disability) coach Leung Shuk-ying was the first time to receive the COY title. Under her leadership, Para swimming team had taken part in various international competitions such as World Para Swimming Series and Asian Para Games.  Para swimmer Chan Yui-lam won the gold medal in the women’s 100m butterfly S14 at 2023 World Para Swimming Championships, securing a berth for upcoming Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.

Para lawn bowls (physical disability) coach Ng Yu-hin earned the COY award for the first time. He led the team to participate in several international competitions and returned with victory. Para lawn bowl team excelled at the Asian Para Games, winning 1 gold and 1 silver in mixed B2 and B3 pairs. Moreover, the team also won a bronze at the 2023 World Bowls Championships men’s B7 pairs event.    

This is tenpin bowling coach William Edward Hoffman’s second-time recognition as the COY title. Under his leadership, Wu Siu-hong, Tse Chun-hin as well as Wong Kwan-yuen clinched a gold medal in men's trios event at the 2023 IBF World Bowling Championships. This marks their return to the honour after six years.

It is also billiard sports coach Nip Hoi-yan’s debut win of the COY award. Under her coaching, player Fu Huan excelled and won a bronze medal in the boy’s Events (U19) at the WPA World 10 Ball Junior Championships 2023.

Sailing coach Rory James Godman was being honoured for the first time with the COY title. With his direction, sailing duo Emily Polson and Mak Hiu-tung grabbed the gold medal by defeating 410 pairs in the female’s 29er (U17) at the 2023 29er World Championships.

The Distinguished Services Award for Coaching was presented to table tennis coach Zhang Rui in recognition of her significant contributions to the Hong Kong table tennis team over the years. Since assuming her coaching role in 2009, she has nurtured numerous world-class table tennis players, including Lee Ho-ching and Doo Hoi-kem. With coach Zhang’s efforts, these athletes excelled at numerous international competitions such as World International Table Tennis Championships and the Olympic Games.

Cycling coach Lai Oi-yan was honoured with the Coach Education Award. She began teaching Cycling Coaching Course level one in 2010, and took the initiative to develop the training materials and syllabuses. In recent years, she devoted her efforts to facilitating the systematization of the coaching systems, demonstrating her significant contribution to cycling coach training and development in Hong Kong. 

Best Team Sport Coach Award was received by rugby sevens coach Paul John. He had been coaching the team since 2017. His leadership guided the team to a gold medal in men’s team and a bronze in women’s team at the Asian Games.

A total of 151 coaches were awarded Coaching Excellence Awards for leading athletes or sports teams to achieve outstanding results at international competitions in 2023, while 40 coaches received the Community Coach Recognition Awards in recognition of their contributions to the community. In addition, 22 full-time teachers were presented with the School Coach Recognition Awards to acknowledge their efforts at school level.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust has funded HKCC’s programmes through donations totalling over HK$24 million since November 2015. The programmes include the Jockey Club Elite Coaching Development Programmes; the Jockey Club Coaching Accreditation Programmes; and the Jockey Club Community Education and Coach Recognition Programmes to further support the career development of coaches. The annual Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards falls under the Jockey Club Community Education and Coach Recognition Programmes, which recognise coaches’ contributions to athletes’ training and development in Hong Kong.

The Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards is organised by the HKCC, a joint committee of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China and the HKSI, which was established in 1991 with the aims of formulating and implementing short-term and long-term strategies for the development of coach education and accreditation programmes in Hong Kong. Over the years, nearly 100,000 participants have benefited from the Programme.

For the list of recipients for the 2023 Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards, please click here. For the past recipients, please click here.