*****************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Choy So-yuk and a written reply by the Secretary for Education and Manpower, Professor Arthur K C Li, on behalf of the Secretary for Home Affairs, Dr Patrick Ho, in the Legislative Council today (February 7):
Question:
While Hong Kong athletes have achieved the record-breaking result of 6 gold, 12 silver and 10 bronze medals in the Doha Asian Games, many athletes say that the subsistence grant they receive is meagre. Regarding livelihood protection for serving and retired full-time athletes, will the Government inform this Council whether:
(a) it knows the maximum and minimum amount of subsistence grant provided to athletes by the Hong Kong Sports Institute at present, the respective criteria adopted for setting and paying such amount, and whether the amount received by individual athletes are linked to their achievements in international sports events;
(b) it has assessed if the subsistence grant received by athletes is sufficient for meeting their expenses on daily living and social activities; and
(c) it has any plan to provide livelihood protection for athletes upon their retirement?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) At present, the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI) provides subsistence grant to full-time athletes mainly through three funding sources that it administers, namely, HKSI monthly stipends, Sports Aid Foundation Fund (SAFF), and Sports Aid for the Disabled Fund (SADF) which caters for the disabled athletes. The HKSI primarily draws reference from the achievements of the athletes in international sports events to set and pay the amounts.
In respect of the HKSI monthly stipends, eligible senior athletes are entitled to receive $2,000 to $10,000 each month while eligible junior athletes are entitled to receive $500 to $3,000 each month. The eligibility criteria for the HKSI monthly stipends are set out at Annex I.
As regards the SAFF, eligible senior athletes are entitled to receive an amount from a minimum of $30,000 to a maximum of $90,000 each year while eligible junior athletes are entitled to receive an amount from a minimum of $10,000 to a maximum of $30,000 each year. The eligibility criteria for the SAFF are set out at Annex II.
As athletes are able to receive both the HKSI monthly stipends and SAFF, the total amount of stipends and financial assistance paid to each senior athlete each month is up to $17,500 on average.
However, in view of the stringent criteria and resource constraint, only a very small number of elite athletes are receiving this level of financial support. The additional funding pledged for promoting sports development in Hong Kong mentioned in the Chief Executive's 2006-07 Policy Address, including $40 million for elite athletes, will enable us to provide enhanced support for elites.
Separately, the minimum and maximum amount provided to each eligible disabled athlete from the SADF each year are $15,000 and $50,000, respectively. The eligibility criteria for the SADF are set out at Annex III.
(b) Apart from the subsistence grant, the HKSI also provides other support to athletes such as free accommodation, meals, medical care and insurance, equipment and attire necessary for training and competition, sports science and medicine support, education and career counselling. It also takes up all expenses for overseas training programmes and competitions. In summary, the support and grants provided by the HKSI should be sufficient for most of the athletes for meeting their expenses on daily living and social activities.
(c) The HKSI currently has a dedicated department that provides education support to elite athletes and career counselling to help full-time athletes to seek out employment after their retirement. To encourage more talented young people to pursue a career in sports, we will review and examine various measures to facilitate the retirement of athletes.
Ends/Wednesday, February 7, 2007
Issued at HKT 15:41
NNNN
