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To achieve wider participation by athletes and the public, the number of sports competitions at the 3rd Hong Kong Games (HKG) to be held in May next year will be increased to eight, with more popular sports events and a wide array of activities for the whole community and athletes to join, enhancing the scale and popularity of the Games.
Speaking at the launching ceremony of the 3rd Hong Kong Games at the Arcade of Kowloon Park, Tsim Sha Tsui, today (June 21), the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Tsang Tak-sing, said sport for all was one of the key objectives of the Government's policy to actively promote sports among the public. The HKG, a collaborative event among the Sports Commission, the 18 District Councils (DCs), the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF & OC), and the relevant National Sports Associations, is moving towards the goal of providing more opportunities for the public to participate in sports and have fun doing it.
Mr Tsang noted that with the 18 districts as the participating units, the HKG would provide athletes from all districts with more opportunities to match their skills with each other. It could also foster closer communication and friendship among members of the districts, thereby further promoting the culture of sport for all and enhancing community cohesion.
The increase in the number of athletes and people taking part in the last two Games shows that the HKG has gained in popularity. Mr Tsang appealed to sports lovers of all 18 districts to actively participate in, and members of the public to support, the Games in order to jointly promote sports development in Hong Kong.
Futsal and volleyball will be added to the 3rd HKG to be held between May 14 and June 5 next year, along with athletics, badminton, basketball, table tennis, swimming and tennis, which featured in the 2nd HKG, making a total of eight events.
Another officiating guest, the Chairman of the 3rd HKG Organising Committee, Mr Chau How-chen, said that the HKG had made big strides and yielded encouraging results in terms of the number of sports and athletes taking part in the Games: six sports and over 2,000 athletes in the 2nd HKG, which was an increase over the four sports and 1,000 athletes in the 1st HKG.
As the participating units of the HKG, the 18 DCs will recruit eligible athletes via an open selection process to represent their districts. Depending on the sport, each district will recruit eligible athletes to contest on its behalf.
There will be prizes for overall champion, 1st runner-up and 2nd runner-up in each of the eight competitions of the 3rd HKG. The three districts accumulating the highest total scores from all eight competitions will be awarded the overall champion, 1st runner-up and 2nd runner-up prizes. In addition, a new prize "District with the Most Gold Medals" has been introduced to commend the district that wins the most gold medals in the 3rd HKG in a bid to encourage active district participation. The district that makes obvious progress in the 3rd HKG over its performance in the last Games will be awarded the newly added "District with the Best Progress" prize.
As in previous Hong Kong Games, the organiser will hold a series of activities including the opening and closing-cum-prize presentation ceremonies, Elite Athletes' Demonstration and Exchange, Cheering Team Competition for the 18 Districts, voting for "My Favourite Sporty District", "Guess the Overall Champion of the 3rd HKG", the Dynamic Moments Photo Contest and the "District with the Greatest Participation in the 3rd HKG" prize. These activities will encourage more people to participate in the HKG in different ways and each district to field more athletes to take part and to enlist community support.
The HKG, held biennially, is organised and co-ordinated by the Sports Commission and the Community Sports Committee respectively, with the 18 DCs, the SF & OC, relevant National Sports Associations (NSAs) and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) as co-organisers. The 3rd HKG Organising Committee was formed in March this year to co-ordinate the work for the Games.
Other officiating guests included the President of the SF & OC, Mr Timothy Fok; Legislative Councillor Mr Ip Kwok-him; and the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Mrs Betty Fung.
Representatives from the 18 DCs and the relevant NSAs as well as eight elite athletes in each of the eight competition sports also attended the launching ceremony to solicit popular participation in and support for the Games.
A 3rd HKG homepage (hongkonggames.lcsd.gov.hk) containing comprehensive information and affiliated with Facebook and Twitter has been commissioned for public browsing and exchanging of views.
The launching ceremony also premiered a publicity video which will be broadcast at the LCSD's leisure venues, Roadshow and the East Rail train compartments. It has also been uploaded onto the 3rd HKG's thematic homepage for public viewing.
For details of the Games, enquiries can be made at the LCSD's District Leisure Services Offices or the secretariat of the 3rd HKG Organising Committee on 2601 7671.
Ends/Monday, June 21, 2010
Issued at HKT 17:28
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