LCQ17: Support measures for promoting sports development
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Question:
In August last year, the Government announced five support measures to promote sports development, which included expediting the implementation of the project for the construction of a new building for the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI), setting up a $300 million special fund to enhance the competitiveness of athletes, strengthening the sports development at the school level, stepping up the support for elite athletes' dual development in sports and academic pursuits, and developing the sports industry. Regarding support measures for promoting sports development, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that the authorities' target is to commission the new building of HKSI in mid-2024,and there is limited space for development in HKSI at present, whether the authorities will consider expanding the campus space of HKSI or identifying a site for a branch campus for HKSI, so as to meet the training needs of elite athletes;
(2) of the progress in implementing various tasks of the "Sports Science and Research Funding Scheme", which include conducting scientific research on sports science and sports medicine, improving athletes' gear, and purchasing extra scientific research equipment for the Scientific Conditioning Centre and the Sports Medicine Centre in HKSI;
(3) as the Government has indicated that it will review how to strengthen sports development through the school curriculum and extra-curricular activities, and increase the opportunities for students to participate in different sports events and competitions, of the progress of the relevant work; whether it is considering increasing the number of hours of physical education lessons allocated by schools; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(4) whether it has compiled statistics on the current total number of serving athletes studying in tertiary institutions and, among them, the number of those who have benefitted from the relevant cooperation agreements between HKSI and various tertiary institutions; whether it can further increase the places for athletes to be subsidised to study in the relevant institutions under such cooperation agreements;
(5) given that the Home Affairs Bureau of the last-term Government has set up a working group to explore with the business and sports sectors on the development and the manpower needs of Hong Kong's sports industry, and will submit a report to the Chief Executive, of the study direction and progress of the relevant work, as well as when the report will be submitted and made public; and
(6) given that in order to encourage schools to open up their school facilities for sports organisations to hold sports activities, the authorities have implemented the "Opening up School Facilities for Promotion of Sports Development Scheme" since the 2017-2018 school year, of the number of schools participated in the Scheme and the number of times for which such schools opened up facilities to sports organisations, in each of the past two years and from January to May this year, with a breakdown by District Council district?
Reply:
President,
The Hong Kong, China Delegation performed brilliantly at the Tokyo Olympic Games with the best results of one gold, two silver and three bronze medals in Hong Kong history, attained remarkable and encouraging results of two silver and three bronze medals at the Tokyo Paralympic Games and captured two gold and five bronze medals at the 14th National Games, making the entire community proud. The success of Hong Kong athletes does not come about by chance. In addition to their own efforts and the support of different sectors, the Government's policy directives and continuous allocation of resources are also indispensable. In August 2021, the Government announced a number of further measures to sustain the development of sports in Hong Kong.
Upon consultation with the Education Bureau (EDB), my reply to the six parts of the question is as follows:
(1) We are taking steps to expedite the construction of the new facilities building of the HongKong Sports Institute (HKSI) and strive for its completion by mid-2024. The new facilities building will mainly provide two new training venues, and expand the facilities for strength and conditioning, sports science and sports medicine. Upon completion of the new facilities building, the HKSI will renovate and repurpose parts of its existing sports complex to provide, among other things, two training venues and one day rest room for athletes. We will keep abreast of elite sports development in Hong Kong and the need for development of facilities in the HKSI. There are no plans to further expand the HKSI at the current stage.
(2) A $300 million Sports Science and Research Funding Scheme was launched in January this year with the aim of enhancing the competitiveness of Hong Kong athletes and better preparing them for major international sports events in the coming years. Over the past few months, the HKSI has been exploring with tertiary institutions and research institutes on various science and research projects with satisfactory progress. The first batch of four applications submitted by the HKSI to the Government in June this year has been approved, involving a funding of about $26 million in total.
(3) The Government has been strengthening sports development at the school level through the school curriculum and activities beyond the class. The EDB requests schools to provide Physical Education (PE) lessons for students according to the curriculum guide and assign teachers with relevant teacher qualifications to teach the PE curriculum. There are at least two lessons per week (Note) for PE from primary to senior secondary levels, while students taking the PE elective subject for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education have the opportunity to dip into sports theory and engage in sports training for around 250 hours in total. The arrangement of lesson time is based on thorough consideration of balancing the learning needs of various Key Learning Areas, catering for the needs of students in whole-person development in five aspects, i.e. moral, intellectual, physical, social and aesthetic development, as well as paying heed to different school contexts. The present arrangement is widely supported across the education sector.
The promotion of students' physical development at schools is not only confined to PE lessons. In general, schools strengthen their physical development through a life-wide learning approach, including introducing "physical activity session" such as morning exercise, increasing the ratio of physical activities in multiple intelligences lessons, organising sports days, swimming galas and school team training, arranging for students to take part in physical activities before morning assemblies, during recess or lunch break, and after school, as well as collaborating with various organisations to engage, with existing resources, professional coaches/instructors to hold new sports activities in schools such as rope skipping and sport climbing, with a view to providing students with more opportunities to participate in physical activities.
In the 2021/22 school year, the EDB has launched the "Active Students, Active People" Campaign to rally the efforts of schools, families and other stakeholders in society for promoting a better sports atmosphere in schools. It has also launched a series of Sharing Sessions by Elite Athletes, produced educational videos on Winter Olympic Games, short videos on themes of Chinese culture such as Chinese folk dance and Wushu, "Physical Activity Logbook" and Physical Fitness presentation slides, and organised the "Vitality Fitness Walking/Running Challenge", etc., for the purpose of giving students more opportunities to take part in physical activities and sports competitions. The EDB has also been collaborating with other government departments, relevant bodies and organisations to organise various types of physical activities/sports programmes, including School Physical Fitness Award Scheme, Outdoor Education Camp Scheme and School Sports Programme. It has also continued to work with different organisations, such as the Hong Kong Schools Sports Federation and Hong Kong Schools Dance Association, for organising various sports and dance competitions and activities with the aim of providing students with opportunities to participate in sports activities.
(4) A total of 246 current HKSI athletes, including 168 full-time athletes and 78 part-time athletes, are pursuing programmes offered by local or non-local tertiary institutions at the moment.
The HKSI has signed Memoranda of Understanding on Elite Athletes Study Programme (MOU) with 12 local tertiary institutions. According to the MOUs, the HKSI may nominate full-time athletes to apply for academic programmes, such as undergraduate degree programmes, and tertiary institutions will provide flexibility in course delivery and learning support for the athletes concerned. A total of 82 full time HKSI athletes are currently benefitting from the MOU. There is no cap on the number of beneficiaries under the MOU.
(5) The Government is exploring how to enhance the professionalism in the sports sector and develop sports as an industry. Completion of the Kai Tak Sports Park and the opportunities arising from the Greater Bay Area will foster more diversified development in sports and provide young people as well as retired athletes with job and development opportunities. We have engaged a consultant to study the relevant issues and consult the sports and business sectors. The consultant is currently preparing the report, which would be completed in the third quarter of this year. We will report to the Panel on Home Affairs of the Legislative Council in due course.
(6) To encourage schools to open up their facilities for sports use, we have launched the Opening up School Facilities for Promotion of Sports Development Scheme (the Scheme) since the 2017/18 school year. Schools are encouraged, through financial incentives under the Scheme, to open up their facilities for use by national sports associations and their affiliated members, district sports associations, sports organisations subvented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and other eligible non-profit making organisations to hold sports programmes during non-school hours. The number of participating schools, the number of schools successfully paired up with sports organisations and the number of sports programmes organised under the Scheme from the 2019/20 to 2021/22 school years with breakdown by districts are set out in the annex. However, due to the fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the actual number of sports programmes organised in the 2021/22 school year will be lower than the number of programmes originally planned.
Note: Around 80 to 120 minutes per week.
Ends/Wednesday, July 6, 2022
Issued at HKT 16:38
Issued at HKT 16:38
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