News

The Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI) today hosted the Open Day and the International Exchange Forum on Preparing Athletes for the 2016 Rio Olympics, sponsored by Mr Ming Wai Lau, on the second day of a two-day celebration marking the completion of the HK$1.8 billion Government-funded HKSI Redevelopment Project.

The opening ceremony for today’s activities was officiated by Mrs Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor GBS JP, Chief Secretary for Administration of the HKSAR Government, in the presence of dozens of experts on elite training and scientific support from around the region and hundreds more sports supporters from the local community.

The Open Day has been included as part of the "Appreciate Hong Kong" campaign that aims to showcase the strengths and beauty of Hong Kong and was themed “Appreciate Hong Kong, Appreciate Elite Athletes”.  It offered the public an opportunity to visit Hong Kong's high performance training centre and better understand the dedication and commitment of Hong Kong’s elite sports stars through a series of exhibitions, demonstrations and talks.

The public was invited to join organised tours of the state-of-the-art training facilities at the HKSI and to try their hand in various sports.

Hong Kong’s senior and junior elite athletes and coaches from badminton, karatedo, rowing, rugby, squash, table tennis, tennis, tenpin bowling and wushu attended today’s activity, greeting and interacting with the visitors to rally community-wide support for sport and wellness in Hong Kong.

To help build affinity with elite athletes as they pursue their dream of representing Hong Kong on the world’s biggest sporting stage, the HKSI Open Day’s programmes and activities included sports demonstrations of various sports, as well as rugby clinics, sports and health talks, and fitness tests.

Through these experiential activities, participants could develop a better understanding and appreciation of the efforts and commitment of Hong Kong athletes.  The experience was heightened by a special exhibition of memorabilia from some of Hong Kong’s highest international sporting achievements including displays of Lee Lai-shan’s windsurfing sailboard from her 1996 Olympic medal winning campaign, Wong Kam-po’s bicycle, gold medals won by Hong Kong athletes in Major Games and World Championships, a cauldron and a torch from the East Asian Games, sports gears and equipment used by athletes, and other commemorative items.

Today’s Open Day was the ultimate showcase of the past successes of Hong Kong athletes, while inspiring a new generation of sportsmen and women to redouble their efforts to pursue a full time career as an elite athlete and bring home more honours for Hong Kong.

Mr Carlson Tong, Chairman of the HKSI said, “I believe that as long as we can provide the best training and support to athletes with potential, they can be inspired to reach new heights, just as our new tagline – to “inspire, train, excel”.

The HKSI also hosted an International Exchange Forum on Preparing Athletes for the 2016 Rio Olympics, sponsored by Mr Ming Wai Lau, today in Fo Tan.  The Forum invited various counterpart leaders and experts to share their views on elite training and sports science, including Mr Zhang Liang, President of the China Institute of Sport Science; Mr Yusaku Morioka, Councillor to the President of the Japan Sport Council; Dr Park Young-ok, President of the Korea Institute of Sport Science; and Mr Tatchanart Tongprakob, Director of the Elite Sports Development Division of the Sports Authority of Thailand; Professor Yu Yaming, President of the Sichuan Orthopaedic Hospital; and Dr Sun Xiaohua, Director of the Ersha Sports Training Centre in Guangdong Province.

“I am glad to see so many sports science experts from around the world here at the international exchange forum.  Next year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games are approaching, the HKSI will try our very best to provide comprehensive and world class training support to Hong Kong’s elite athletes.” added Mr Tong.

During the Forum, they shared knowledge, expertise and insights into the preparation of athletes for the Games next August with over 170 attending sports administrators, science and medicine practitioners, coaches, athletes, academics, students and the public.

As Hong Kong's state-of-the-art high performance training centre, the HKSI was well represented in the Forum, with its team of elite training experts discussing their progress in helping local elite athletes in optimising their performance.

In order to enhance the information exchange between sports experts and athletes, the HKSI also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Ersha Sports Training Centre on the day. This organisational collaboration will help improve the coaching and performance excellence for both Hong Kong and China.

For video highlights of the activities, please visit the Video Gallery (Welcoming Ceremony for International Forum & Public Open Day / Public Open Day).