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Hong Kong’s competition venues are “ready” to welcome the nearly 4,000 athletes, officials and staff anticipated for the National Games, the city’s No 2 official has stressed. Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki said on Saturday that hosting the multi-sport competition would not only attract visitors to Hong Kong but also showcase the city’s capability in organising major events. “Currently, all the competition venues are fully ready for the National Games. We have also devised detailed security plans, crowd and traffic control arrangements, and contingency plans to ensure that competitions will go ahead smoothly and safely,” Chan told a press conference in Guangzhou. This year marks the first time Hong Kong has co-hosted the Games as part of a tripartite arrangement with Guangdong and Macau. The event will take place from Sunday to November 21. Fencing, track cycling, rugby sevens, golf, triathlon, beach volleyball, men’s handball and the under-22 men’s basketball tournament will all be held in Hong Kong. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu will lead a government delegation to Guangzhou on Sunday to attend the Games’ opening ceremony. Members of his delegation include Chan, Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung and Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law Shuk-pui. Chan said that during the event, the command centre for Hong Kong’s competition zones would monitor all operational data in real time and stay in close contact with the main control facility for the Games. “Each competition venue has also set up its own venue command centre to ensure the smooth operation of the venues and the execution of events,” he said. According to Chan, nearly 4,000 people are expected to take part in the Hong Kong events, including more than 2,100 athletes and re than 1,800 officials and technical staff. Hundreds of journalists will also travel to the city to cover the Games. The city’s No 2 official said the arrangement for Hong Kong to co-host the Games with Guangdong and Macau reflected the country’s high level of trust and expectation towards the city, as well as the vast potential for coordinated sports development in the Greater Bay Area. The area refers to Beijing’s ambitious plan to transform Hong Kong, Macau and nine mainland Chinese cities into an integrated hi-tech economic powerhouse by 2035. Asked about the sporting event’s impact on Hong Kong’s economy and status as a hub for mega-events, Chan said he expected the Games would attract many tourists eager to experience the city’s unique charm and enthusiasm for sports. The city’s travel agencies have launched package tours for mainland visitors to attend events in Hong Kong this month, with golf and rugby proving the most popular. Authorities have estimated that around 100,000 visitors will come to the city during the event. “Through organising the National Games, Hong Kong showcases the city’s capability to organise large-scale competitions. It further solidifies Hong Kong’s reputation as an international capital of mega-events, laying a solid foundation for attracting more premier sports events to be held in Hong Kong in the future,” Chan said. “In addition, organising large-scale sports events will leverage the ‘sports plus tourism’ synergistic effect to drive the development of tourism, hotel, retail, and food and beverage industries.” Chan added that as more tourists from the mainland and overseas were drawn to Hong Kong for the Games and to explore the surrounding region, there would be greater opportunities for regional collaboration and the city’s tourism sector would see long-term benefits.
