Demographics and culture of Hong Kong |
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Demographics |
Culture |
Other Hong Kong topics |
Sports in Hong Kong are a significant part of its culture. Due to British influence going as far back as the late 19th century, Hong Kong had an earlier introduction to Western athletics compared to other Asia regions.
In terms of participation, jogging, swimming, badminton, basketball, fitness, football(soccer) have the most participants. [1] In terms of favourites, badminton (27.5%), swimming (24%), association football (soccer) (18.4%), basketball (9.8%), and tennis (3.8%) are the most popular sports. [2]
Golf is an increasingly popular sport, despite the relatively few number of courses in the city. In 2009, Hong Kong successfully organised the V East Asian Games and it was the biggest sporting event ever held in the territory. Other major international sporting events including the Equestrian at the 2008 Summer Olympics, the Hong Kong Open Golf Championship, the Hong Kong Sevens, Hong Kong Marathon, AFC Asian Cup, EAFF East Asian Cup, Hong Kong Badminton Open, Hong Kong Tennis Classic, Premier League Asia Trophy, and Lunar New Year Cup. Hong Kong athletes have improved in worldwide rankings. As of 2010, there are 32 Hong Kong athletes from seven sports ranking in world's Top 20, 29 athletes in six sports in Asia top 10 ranking. Moreover, Hong Kong is equally impressive performance of athletes with disabilities in 2009, having won four world championships and two Asian Champions. [3]
Hong Kong City Hall is located today where the original location of "Victoria Recreation Club" stood in 1849 after having been in operation in Canton since 1832. It is the first sporting club established in Hong Kong's history. [4] The first sports involved were water sports such as rowing.
The Hong Kong Open golf tournament is Hong Kong's oldest professional sporting event.
The primary sport in Hong Kong has been football due mainly to British influence going as far back as the late 19th century. The first documented team came from the "Chinese Football Team" of 1904, which began as a club called the "South China Athletic Club" founded by Mok Hing. [4] It was the first team to join The Hong Kong Football Association league in 1913/1914. At the time, the introduction of Hong Kong First Division League in 1908 was also another milestone. In the 1917 Far Eastern Games and 1919 Far Eastern Games, the club represented the Republic of China and won the football championship. [4] It is the only team in Hong Kong sports history to have accomplished this feat. [4] Around 1920–1922, it formally adopted the present name of South China Athletic Association and diversified into other sports. [4]
Financial Secretary John James Cowperthwaite was one of the first government official to assist Hong Kong going into the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne Australia with a contribution estimate of HK$10,000. [4]
Victoria Park was one of the free range open space for pick-up games. Until the Hong Kong Stadium was built, there was no arena for spectator sports. By the 1960s a number of clubs have surfaced for mostly social reasons. Since then, Hong Kong sports has been described as "Club Life". Some clubs have documented their history thoroughly, while others have disappeared along with their past.
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A large sports park is currently being constructed on the site of the old Kai Tak Airport. Once completed, Kai Tak Sports Park will be the largest sports venue in Hong Kong and will include a 50,000 seat Main Stadium, an Indoor Sports Center, a Public Sports Ground and multiple open spaces. [5]
After World War II the Amateur Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong (ASF&OC) was established. The committee selected athletic leaders to represent Hong Kong in times of competition. Eventually the committee became known as the National Olympic Committee. After the transfer of sovereignty in 1997, Hong Kong has competed internationally under the name "Hong Kong, China" with the Bauhinia region flag. It is treated separately from People's Republic of China, which is counted as another entry in the games. [6]
A variety of sports are available in Hong Kong, with most having their own association, and many clubs and groups, along with provision by bodies such as YWCA and YMCA. There are also local organisations that strive to help Hong Kong residents identify sports that are not broadly advertised enough. [7] [8] The Hong Kong Government is also known for its proactive approach towards sporting events prior to the Beijing Olympics.
There are many sports available in Hong Kong for participation by residents, including:
Badminton is one of the most popular sports in Hong Kong.
Some of the notable current professionals includes athletes such as Tse Ying Suet/Tang Chun Man in the mixed doubles category reaching the highest world ranking of 2, and Ng Ka Long Angus in the Men's single discipline with the highest ranking of 6.
Basketball is one of the most popular sports in Hong Kong. [10] [2]
Hong Kong's national basketball team regularly qualifies for the FIBA Asia Cup. In club competitions, its team Regal won the 1997 ABC Champions Cup.
Hong Kong hosted the official 1983 Asian Basketball Championship.
Cricket in Hong Kong has been played since at least 1841. Like most cricketing nations, it was part of the British Empire. The national cricket team has been active since 1866, and the Hong Kong Cricket Association was granted associate membership of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1969. Hong Kong hosted the Hong Kong Cricket Sixes, an ICC sanctioned event that features teams of six players in a six over competition annually till 2012. The Hong Kong Cricket Team qualified for 2014 ICC World Twenty20 and caused a major upset by defeating hosts Bangladesh.
Dragon boat racing is one of the most popular sports in Hong Kong. [10] The traditional Chinese sport of dragon boat racing was originally held as part of the Duan Wu festivities in Hong Kong. It is now spread internationally with races held all around the world. The Hong Kong Dragon Boat Association was a founding member of the international and regional governing bodies for dragon boat racing: The International Dragon Boat Federation and Asian Dragon Boat Federation. The oldest International Festival Races are those held in Hong Kong annually. The HKIR have been held since 1976 and are acknowledged as starting the modern era of the dragon boatsport.
Football is one of the most popular sports in Hong Kong, with Hong Kong Premier League being the only fully professional sports league in the city. [10] [2] Lunar New Year Cup, which is held in Hong Kong Stadium, is a famous international football tournament hosted in Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong ePrix is an annual race of the single-seater, electrically powered Formula E championship, held at the Hong Kong Central Harbourfront Circuit in Hong Kong. It was first raced in the 2016–17 season.
Golf has been played in Hong Kong ever since the establishment of the Hong Kong Golf Club in 1879. The club, which has hosted the Hong Kong Open every year since 1959, has two sites - Fanling, which is home to three championship-calibre courses, and Deep Water Bay, a short nine hole course in southern Hong Kong Island. Hong Kong Golf Club is considered among the premier golf clubs in Asia and, despite being a private members' club, is open to visitors from Mondays through Fridays.
Horse racing is by far the most popular spectator sport in Hong Kong and generates the largest horse race gambling turnover in the world. [11] This British tradition left its mark as one of the most important entertainment and gambling institutions in Hong Kong. Established as the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club in 1884, the non-profit organization conducts nearly 700 races every season at the two race tracks in Happy Valley and Sha Tin. The sport annually draws in over 11% of Hong Kong's tax revenue. Off-track betting is available from overseas bookmakers. In 2009, betting on horse races generated an average US$12.7 million in gambling turnover per race, 6 times larger than its closest rival France at US$2 million while the United States only generated $250,000. Some consider betting on horse races an investment. [12]
Hong Kong men's national lacrosse team is one of Asia's top teams. It has qualified for the World Lacrosse Championship for the fifth consecutive time.
Hong Kong has sent national teams to the Under-19 World Lacrosse Championships. [13]
In October 2021, Hong Kong's women's lacrosse team won bronze Dalmatia Cup in Split, Croatia. In its preparation for the World Lacrosse Women's World Championship, Hong Kong beat the Czech Republic 8-4 as team captain Daphne Li won the tournament MVP award. Head coach was Jenifer Marrosu. [14]
Rugby is long established, partly as a result of its being a British colony. In contrast to the People's Republic of China, it has had a continuous existence dating back over a hundred years, and is most notable for its sevens tournaments.
The Hong Kong Rugby Football Union was founded in 1953.
The Hong Kong Games is a territorial multi-sport event first held in 2007. The 18 districts of Hong Kong are the participating units.
The Hong Kong Marathon takes place every February and draws as many as 30,000 participants.
Hong Kong competes separately from China in various international sporting events. Hong Kong also had its own team during British administration prior to 1997.
Hong Kong has been participating in the Asian Games since the 1954 Games. The most recent participation was the 2022 Asian Games. With the Government's support, the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China submitted Hong Kong's bid for hosting the 2006 Asian Games to the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) in 2000. Hong Kong lost the bid to Doha at the OCA general meeting held in Busan, South Korea on 12 November 2000.
Hong Kong has participated in every East Asian Games since 1993, being a member of the East Asian Games Association (EAGA). The territory hosted the 2009 East Asian Games.
Hong Kong competed at the Commonwealth Games from 1934 until 1994 as a British colony (as a Dependent territory from the 1986 Games). Over the years Team Hong Kong picked up a number of medals, including in Lawn Bowls.
Hong Kong has participated in all Summer Olympic Games since the 1952 Games in Helsinki, Finland. The first medal was won in the 1996 Games in Atlanta, USA. Lee Lai Shan won gold in the women's mistral individual event in sailing. Coincidentally, it was also the last medal won by Hong Kong as a British territory.
The territory participated under the new name and its new regional flag for the first time in the 2000 Games in Sydney. Hong Kong won its second ever Olympic medal in the 2004 Games in Athens, Greece, where Hong Kong won silver in men's doubles event in table tennis.
In London 2012, Wai-sze Lee's bronze is Hong Kong's first ever Olympic medal in cycling and its third overall.
In Tokyo 2020, Cheung Ka-long won an Olympic gold medal for Hong Kong, the first Olympic gold medal since the Handover of Hong Kong. In the same Olympics Siobhán Bernadette Haughey won two silver medals; the women's table tennis team, Grace Lau Mo-sheung, and Lee Wai-sze each won a bronze medal.
In Paris 2024, Vivian Kong became the third athlete to win a gold medal in the women's epee event, whilst Cheung Ka-long became the third fencer to retain his Olympic title by winning his second gold and Siobhán Bernadette Haughey took home two bronze medals.
The equestrian events of the 2008 Summer Olympics was held in Hong Kong. This marked the second time the same edition of the Olympic Games being hosted by two National Olympic Committees, namely by that of the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Sports Institute at Fo Tan, Sha Tin was the site of the show jumping and dressage events. The cross-country phase of the three day event was held in Sheung Shui over both Beas River Equestrian Centre and Fanling Golf Course.
Hong Kong participated its first Winter Olympic Games in the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, USA. Hong Kong has not won a medal at the Winter Games.
The first appearance of Hong Kong was in 1972 Summer Paralympics where ten male athletes took part. The team has never participated in the Winter Paralympics.
The Hong Kong Sevens were established in 1976 and since held in March every year except for 1997 and 2005. It is considered the premier tournament on the IRB Sevens World Series. Organised by the Hong Kong Rugby Football Union, the tournament is held annually at the last weekend of March as a two-and-a-half-day event. It is participated by as many as 22 countries.
Hong Kong participated in its first World Equestrian Games (WEG) in 2014 in Normandy France in Endurance, Show Jumping, and para-Dressage.
Hong Kong was announced as the host city of the 11th Gay Games, at a gala event at the Hotel de Ville in Paris, on 30 October 2017. They won with a clear majority of votes, in the first round of voting. It is the first time that the Gay Games will be held in Asia.
The "longlist" of cities interested in bidding to host Gay Games XI in 2022 was announced in April 2016. [15] An unprecedented seventeen cities were interested in bidding. On 30 June 2016, the Federation of Gay Games announced that eleven cities had submitted their Letter of Intent to formally bid. [16] Anaheim, Atlanta, Des Moines, Madison, Minneapolis and San Antonio decided not to pursue their option to bid. On 31 July 2016, 9 cities submitted their second registration fee to remain in the bid process. Both Cape Town and Tel Aviv dropped out at this stage, stating an intention to bid for Gay Games XII in 2026. On 30 November 2016, Bid Books were submitted by eight candidate cities with Los Angeles dropping out at this stage.
Lee Lai Shan is a former world champion and Olympic gold medal-winning professional windsurfer from Hong Kong. She was the first athlete to win an Olympic medal representing Hong Kong. As of 2024, she is the still the only non-fencer to win an Olympic gold medal for Hong Kong.
South Korea has traditional sports of its own, as well as sports from different cultures and countries.
The East Asian Games was a multi-sport event organized by the East Asian Games Association and held every four years from 1993 to 2013. Among those who competed included athletes from East Asian countries and territories of the Olympic Council of Asia, as well as the Pacific island nation of Guam, which is a member of the Oceania National Olympic Committees.
The 9th Asian Games, also known as Delhi 1982, were held from 19 November to 4 December 1982, in Delhi, India. 74 Asian and Asian Games records were broken at the event. This was also the first Asiad to be held under the aegis of the Olympic Council of Asia. Delhi joined Bangkok as the cities to host multiple editions of the Asian Games up to this point. Later, Jakarta and Doha would enter this group.
The 1990 Asian Games, also known as the XI Asiad and the 11th Asian Games (第十一届亚洲运动会) or simply Beijing 1990 (北京1990), were held from September 22 to October 7, 1990, in Beijing, China. This was the first Asian Games held in China.
The United Kingdom has been represented at every modern Olympic Games. By end of the 2024 Summer Olympics, it is third in the all-time Summer Olympic medal table by overall number of medals, and fourth in number of gold medals won. London hosted the Summer Olympic Games in 1908, 1948 and 2012.
Sports in China consists of a variety of competitive sports. Traditional Chinese culture regards physical fitness as an important characteristic. China has its own national quadrennial multi-sport event similar to the Olympic Games called the National Games.
Sport in Pakistan is a significant part of Pakistani culture. Cricket is the most popular sport in Pakistan. Football has also gained popularity in recent years, and is the second most popular sport in the country. Field hockey is the national sport, and was popular for several decades, with some of Pakistan's greatest sporting accomplishments having taken place in this sport, along with squash. Polo and traditional sports like kabaddi and other well-known games are also played.
Macau residents participate in a wide variety of sports for recreation and competition. Football, basketball, volleyball, Dragon Boat, jogging, swimming, table tennis, and badminton are among the most popular in the community. Local leagues and competitions are organized regularly every year, but owing to Macau's small population professional leagues are financially unfeasible and so most participants are merely local sport enthusiasts.
The 2009 East Asian Games, officially known as the V East Asian Games, was an international multi-sport event that hosted by Hong Kong, between 5 December and 13 December 2009. A total of 2,377 athletes from 9 East Asian national competed in 262 events in 22 sports. It was the biggest sporting event ever held in the territory.
In Taiwan, some of the most popular sports include baseball, basketball, badminton, football, softball, table tennis, tennis, and volleyball. Martial arts such as tai chi and taekwondo are also practiced by many people. International-known athletes include Jeremy Lin, Tai Tzu-ying, Kuo Hsing-chun, Yu Chang, Chien-Ming Wang, Lin Yun-ju, Yang Chuan-kwang, Chou Tien-chen, Hsieh Su-wei, and Yani Tseng among others.
Association football and basketball are the most popular sports in Asia. Cricket is the third most popular sport in Asia, and is most popular in South Asia. Other popular sports in Asia include baseball, badminton and table tennis among others. There are also some traditional sports that are popular in certain regions of Asia, such as the South Asian sports kabaddi and kho-kho, and sepak takraw in Southeast Asia. Top sporting nations/regions in Asia include China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, India, Iran, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
India has a history of sports dating back to the Vedic period, with Western sports having been imported during British rule. Cricket is the most popular spectator sport; it generates the highest television viewership, with the Indian Premier League (IPL) being the most-followed league in the country. Football has also gained popularity, with the Indian Super League (ISL) being the highest level of domestic football, and the national team winning multiple gold medals at the Asian and South Asian Games. Additional football accomplishments include India having reached the Groupstage of the 1960 Olympics, qualified for the 1950 FIFA World Cup, and won the SAFF Championship. Other sports include kabaddi, badminton, tennis, and athletics, with kho-kho becoming the fourth-most viewed sport. India has also had success in field hockey, winning the World Cup and multiple medals in the Olympic Games. Sports such as golf, rugby, boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, motorsport, wrestling, and basketball are featured throughout the country.
Arnold Chung Chi Lok is a Hong Kong sprint canoer who competed in the early 1990s. At the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, he was eliminated in the repechages of both the K-2 500 m and the K-2 1000 m event.
Sports in Malaysia are an important part of Malaysian culture. Sports in Malaysia are popular from both the participation and spectating aspect. Malaysians from different walks of life join in a wide variety of sports for recreation as well as for competition. In the broadest definition of sports—physical exercise of all sorts—the four most popular recreational sports among the general population of Malaysia are exercise walking, aerobic exercise, strength training, and running. Other most popular sports are bicycling, swimming, climbing, camping, bowling, hiking, fishing, scuba diving and paragliding.
The 2013 East Asian Games, officially known as the VI East Asian Games, was an international multi-sport event that took place in Tianjin, China, between 6 October and 15 October 2013. 2,422 Athletes from nine East Asian nations competed in 254 events in 24 sports.
Hong Kong competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the territory's sixteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics, since its debut as a British colony in 1952.
The 2019 Asian Youth Athletics Championships was the third edition of the biennial, continental athletics competition for Asian athletes aged 15 to 17. It was held at the Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground in Hong Kong from 15 to 17 March. Organised by the Hong Kong Amateur Athletic Association, a total of forty events will be contested with the events divided evenly between the sexes. The host was announced in January 2019 by Asian Athletics Association.
Hong Kong competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, marking the territory's seventeenth appearance at the Summer Olympics since its debut as a British colony in 1952. More medals were won at the 2020 Summer Olympics by athletes representing Hong Kong than ever before, and Hong Kong also won its first gold medal since the handover back to China.
The XI Gay Games 2023, also known as Gay Games 11, GGHK2023, GGGDL2023 and Hong Kong - Guadalajara Gay Games 2023, were an international multi-sport event and cultural gathering organised by, but not limited to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBTQ+) athletes, artists and musicians, known as Gay Games. It was held from November 3 to November 11, 2023, in both Hong Kong and Guadalajara, Mexico.
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