The Argentina Football Association (AFA) said Thursday the national team will play two friendlies in the United States in March after China cancelled matches in a spat over a Lionel Messi no-show in Hong Kong.

The world champions will play El Salvador in Philadelphia on March 22 and Nigeria in Los Angeles four days later, the AFA said on its website.

They were meant to play Nigeria in Hangzhou and African champions Ivory Coast in Beijing, but these matches were cancelled after Argentina captain Messi did not play in a match on February 4 — taken by China as a political snub.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner is idolized by fans in China but stayed on the bench during Inter Miami’s 4-1 win in a pre-season tour match against a Hong Kong select XI.

A near 40,000 sellout crowd, having paid upwards of 1,000 Hong Kong dollars (US$125) to see the 36-year-old superstar in action, chanted “Refund!”, gave thumbs-down signs and booed Messi and the team’s co-owner David Beckham after the final whistle.

Messi insists his absence was forced by injury.

The United States will host the Copa America in June and July, where Argentina will seek to retain the crown it took in Brazil in 2021.

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Argentinian footballer Lionel Messi has told Chinese fans that his absence from a much-publicised Hong Kong match was not political, after he was accused of attempting to humiliate the city as it aimed to boost its international image.

In a video posted on Chinese social media platform Weibo on Monday night, Messi said it was “totally untrue” that he sat out the match earlier this month for political reasons. He repeated an earlier statement given to reporters that he had been suffering from inflamed leg muscles.

“I’ve had a very close and special relationship with China,” the Inter Miami footballer said, speaking Spanish in the video which included Simplified Chinese and English subtitles.

“I’ve done lots of things in China: interviews, games and events. I’ve also been there and played many times for FC Barcelona and the [Argentinian] national team.”

Messi’s two-minute video was the latest development in a saga that started when tens of thousands of fans were left disappointed after the footballer remained on the bench during a friendly match earlier this month, in which American football club Inter Miami was playing against local team Hong Kong XI.

The Consumer Council received over 1,350 complaints from local football fans and tourists who had travelled to Hong Kong for the game. Tatler Asia, which organised the match, said it would withdraw a bid for a HK$16 million government grant and announced it would offer fans a 50 per cent refund.

Amid the fiasco, China’s state-run Global Times said in an editorial that there were possible “political motives” behind Messi’s no-show. The editorial suggested that external forces were “deliberately seeking to embarrass Hong Kong” as the city sought to attract more international events.

Senior government advisor and lawmaker Regina Ip blamed a “black hand,” calling the incident a “deliberate and calculated snub to Hong Kong.”

The Beijing Football Association has since cancelled two of Argentina’s friendly matches – against Nigeria in Hangzhou and Ivory Coast in Beijing – slated for March. The South American country’s team, captained by Messi, had earlier announced a tour in China.

‘Special affection’ for China

Mainland China is home to a growing football market, with Chinese leader Xi Jinping a self-proclaimed football fan who has expressed hope of China becoming a global football powerhouse.

Messi’s Weibo video attracted around close to 60,000 likes by noon on Tuesday, with most comments speaking positively of the football star. They also said they understood that Messi was injured and would not have been able to recover overnight.

“I believe this footballer who I have always loved would never have any bias… football is pure, and so is he,” one Chinese comment read.

In his video, Messi said he sent “good wishes to everyone in China who I’ve always had special affection for.”

The government said it welcomed Tatler Asia’s decision to offer a 50 per cent refund for those who purchased tickets. It added that authorities still hoped that Inter Miami would offer an explanation about Messi’s absence from the pitch to local and international fans who had travelled to the city for the game.

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Siobhan Haughey of Hong Kong won the first long-course world title of her career by taking gold in the women’s 200m freestyle on Wednesday.

Haughey, the Olympic silver medallist at both the 100m and 200m free in Tokyo, also gave Hong Kong the first world gold in its history.

She touched first in 1min 54.89sec, ahead of New Zealand’s Erika Fairweather and Brianna Throssell of Australia.

Haughey, 26, who has won three short-course world golds in her career, grabbed her chance with the three medallists from the Fukuoka world championships last year missing from the lineup in Doha.

“It means so much to me, especially since in the past few times I just missed out on the podium. So it is really special,” she said.

“I hoped the time would be a little better but I think there is a lot to learn from this race.”

There was also a first world title in the pool for Ireland, thanks to Daniel Wiffen’s win in the men’s 800m freestyle, in a time of 7:40.94.

In the men’s 200m butterfly, Tomoru Honda won the gold for Japan in the absence of reigning world champion Leon Marchand, with a time of 1 min 53.88sec.

In common with many leading performers, Frenchman Marchand is focusing his efforts on training for the Paris Olympics later this year.

Meanwhile, 19-year-old Chinese sensation Pan Zhanle, who broke the 100m freestyle world record earlier in these championships, was the fastest qualifier for Thursday’s final of the event with a time of 47.73sec.

On Sunday, Pan stopped the clock at 46.80sec to shave 0.06sec off the previous record set by Romanian David Popovici at the European championships in Rome in August 2022.

Pan achieved the new mark when leading off the Chinese team during the 4x100m freestyle relay to set up teammates Ji Xinjie, Zhang Zhanshuo and Wang Haoyu to seal gold for China in 3:11.08.

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Sports bosses in China have cancelled two friendly matches featuring world champions Argentina, after their star man Lionel Messi failed to turn out for his club in a Hong Kong exhibition match.

Argentina had announced a tour in China from March 18 to 26, during which it was to face Nigeria in Hangzhou and Ivory Coast in Beijing.

But last week a high-profile friendly between Inter Miami and a select XI in Hong Kong sparked jeers and calls for refunds, after Messi did not take to the field, citing injury.

Some nationalist politicians and outlets have interpreted the no-show in the 4-1 Inter Miami win — and Messi’s subsequent appearance at a similar match in Japan — as a snub to China, without offering evidence.

“Beijing does not plan, for the moment, to organise the match in which Lionel Messi was to participate,” the Beijing Football Association, which oversees football in the capital, said in a press release Saturday.

The Hangzhou match had already been cancelled on Friday evening.

“Given the reasons that everyone knows, according to the competent authorities, the conditions for the event to take place are not met,” said the Hangzhou Sports Bureau.

Widely considered the best player of his generation, Messi is a highly marketable sportsman who people around the world will pay top dollar to see, even in the twilight of his trophy-laden career.

Spectators who had paid upwards of 1,000 Hong Kong dollars ($125) to see the 36-year-old in the southern Chinese city chanted “Refund!” when he sat out the match, gave thumbs-down signs and drowned out the team’s co-owner David Beckham with jeers as he tried to thank the crowd.

The Hong Kong government demanded an explanation from the match’s organisers, Tatler Asia.

Tatler has since promised spectators a 50-percent refund.

Just days after the no-show, however, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner played 30 minutes of a friendly match in Japan — causing outrage and accusations that he had singled out China.

Messi has said it was “bad luck” that he could not play and that he hoped to return to the city.

The cancellation of the matches in China is a headache for the Argentine Football Federation, which considers the Asian giant a strategic market.

In June 2023, Argentina played a friendly in Beijing during a visit that resulted in lucrative contracts with local companies.

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A rare moment of public preoccupation has hit Hong Kong as a result of the incident which would in due course probably be called Messigate by the popular tabloids, if we had any left.

The hero of this debacle is Lionel Messi, a footballer of sublime gifts who is now getting a bit long in the tooth. As footballers sometimes do at this stage of their careers, he has moved from the highly competitive European scene to the US of A, where the football is worse but the money is better. Not so much a swan song as a goose with golden eggs song.

So, Messi now twinkles his agile toes for a new club called Inter Miami. The name is a straight lift from a legendary Italian club, Inter Milan. Inter Miami is not yet legendary.

But Messi is, so when a local lifestyle magazine, backed by a government grant and official approval for the staging of “mega events,” arranged for Inter Miami to come and perform in Hong Kong there was great excitement among football fans.

Many of them had the opportunity to watch a training session or to see Messi from a distance. Less publicly, for a six-figure sum people could get close enough for a selfie and a few words, although as Messi is from Spanish-speaking Argentina the communication may have been a bit disappointing for everyone concerned.

The high point of the whole exercise was a friendly match against a Hong Kong team assembled from the local performers. More than 30,000 spectators turned up for this, paying up to HK$4,880 for the privilege.

I was not one of them. Inoculated by five years as a professional watcher of football matches I am rarely tempted and “friendly” games in my experience usually disappoint. One of the reasons for this is that professional athletes are surprisingly fragile and reluctant to risk their livelihood in encounters which are merely entertainment. As a result, there is a tendency for people to drop out at the last minute if they get a twinge somewhere.

And so, alas, it turned out on this occasion. Inter Miami did their stuff, and saw off the Hong Kong team handily, but they did so without the assistance of Messi, who was down as a substitute but was not used.

Many of the spectators were extremely offended, and a speech at the end of the match from David Beckham, who used to be a footballer but nowadays is famous for being famous, was booed.

Cue outrage on all channels that fans had been scammed. The internet frothed with bitter complaints. Some irate fans resorted to the Consumer Council. Column inches were devoted to Messi’s medical symptoms and history. Academics were interviewed. Chinese-state media suggested that it was a result of “external forces” seeking to embarrass the city.

After the organising magazine announced that – given the circumstances – it would not collect the government subsidy, our leaders could wade in. Secure, for a change, from charges that they had misplanned an event or wasted taxpayers’ money, they were free to express warm solidarity with disgruntled fans and call for money to be returned to them.

Which is all very well, and has provided a great deal of harmless media fodder. It has also, rather regrettably, consumed a large chunk of the rather small period allowed for people to comment on the upcoming national security legislation.

This is a pity. I was surprised by a recent offering in China Daily’s English version from Lau Siu-kai. Lau is an emeritus professor of sociology – a polite academic way of saying retired – and a consultant to the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, a think tank where democratic ideas are drowned.

Those of us who were here at the time will remember as the high point of Lau’s career his prediction in 2003 that the July 1 march against the government’s first attempt to pass such legislation would only attract 30,000 or so people – a forecast which turned out to be about 500,000 people light.

However, if you want to know what the government is plotting then Lau is your man, so I waded through his thoughts on “colour revolutions.” This involved a very elaborate string of definitions, understandable in a way because Lau could hardly be expected to use the common-sense definition, which would be something like “a popular movement aiming at the overthrow of a despotic regime.” For Lau a colour revolution is a Bad Thing.

He then proceeded to explain how the national security law would prevent colour revolutions in Hong Kong. Which included some interesting observations. For example:

It will no longer be possible for political groups to freely participate in the leadership, planning, organization and mobilization of a “color revolution”. The Ordinance will stipulate: “If the Secretary for Security reasonably believes that prohibiting the operation or continued operation of any local organization in the HKSAR is necessary for safeguarding national security, the Secretary for Security may by order published in the Gazette prohibit the operation or continued operation of the organization in the HKSAR,” and “If a local organization is a political body and has a connection with an external political organization, the Security for Security may by order published in the Gazette prohibit the operation or continued operation of the local organization in the HKSAR.

This seems a little stark. No obligation to tell society first, or give it a chance to explain itself; no avenue for appeal? It also seems a bit unnecessary. In 2018 the police withdrew registration as a society from the Hong Kong National Party on national security grounds. We are plugging a non-existent loophole.

Then there is this:

It will be difficult for hostile forces to spread false information to slander the central government and the HKSAR government, to instigate hatred, division and opposition in society, and to instigate, lead and organize unrest. That is because they would be committing the offense of espionage under the Ordinance, which includes “colluding with an external force to publish a statement of fact that is false or misleading to the public, and the person, with intent to endanger national security or being reckless as to whether national security would be endangered, so publishes the statement; and knows that the statement is false or misleading.

I quite see why one might wish to have a law against false statements, although this seems to be covered by the sedition offence which we already have. But, at least in English, I do not see how this can be classed as espionage. This is a concern because espionage is generally treated as a very serious matter, whereas publishing a statement might in some circumstances be a fairly minor offence, if for example the publication was seen by very few people.

It used to be said that the British army was always preparing to fight the last war, not the next one. Something rather similar seems to be afflicting our government. The Hong Kong Journalists Association is “not recognised” because of two disagreements in 2019, a play is cancelled because the founder of the drama group tweeted something in 2019, a legislator making reasonable points about tourism and police work is accused of speaking “dangerously” and sounding like some of the things that were said in… 2019.

Now we have national security legislation which appears to be an attempt to criminalise anything and everything people did in 2019 which didn’t please the government. The fear of an encore is unwarranted. The people who wanted the five demands have got the message. They are either going or gone. Relax.

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Lionel Messi’s no-show at a match in Hong Kong has triggered a surge of online outrage in the city and in mainland China, with the football superstar accused of seeking to embarrass Beijing — or even engaging in a sinister foreign plot.

The Argentine ace and his team Inter Miami sparked fury in Hong Kong from fans on Sunday when he did not play in a friendly, citing injury.

Enthusiasts who had splashed upwards of 4,800 Hong Kong dollars ($500) to see Messi chanted “Refund!”, gave thumbs-down signs and drowned out the team’s co-owner David Beckham with jeers as he tried to thank the crowd.

Just days later, however, he played 30 minutes of a friendly match in Japan — causing outrage and accusations that he had singled out China.

On Friday, Tatler Asia, the event’s organisers, said it was “deeply sorry” and promised those who had bought tickets a 50 percent refund.

But the outcry has led influential nationalist tabloid Global Times to suggest that sinister foreign forces had conspired to hurt the city’s reputation.

“One theory is that (Messi’s) actions have political motives, as Hong Kong intends to boost [the] economy through the event and external forces deliberately wanted to embarrass Hong Kong through this incident,” it said.

“Judging from the development of the situation, the possibility of this speculation cannot be ruled out.”

The Hong Kong government has demanded an explanation from the match’s organisers, who had sought public funding for the event, and said that they had been repeatedly assured Messi would play.

The Argentine player has said it was “bad luck” that he couldn’t play and that he hopes to return to the city.

But top Hong Kong government advisor Regina Ip has fumed that Messi should “never be allowed to return”.

“Hong Kong people hate Messi, Inter-Miami, and the black hand behind them, for the deliberate and calculated snub to Hong Kong,” Ip said on social media platform X, deploying a phrase commonly used by the city’s officials to allege sinister foreign interference.

“His lies and hypocrisy are disgusting,” she said.

On the mainland, Messi’s non-appearance has trended on the X-like Weibo platform all week.

A post by the footballer expressing regret for not being able to play was inundated with mocking comments and memes.

Some featured Messi as an Imperial Japanese soldier — a reference to his alleged preference for the country over China.

“Messi is very rude and arrogant, which is really annoying,” one user wrote.

Reflecting the sore feelings, Hong Kong actress Samantha Ko Hoi-ling was also forced to apologise on the platform after she told local media in the city that she “understood” his decision to skip the game.

But some suggested the reaction was overblown.

“Do we really need to turn it into a struggle session?” wrote one Weibo user in a reference to China’s bloody Cultural Revolution, when alleged enemies of leader Mao Zedong were forced into public confessions.

Hu Xijin, a prominent nationalist commentator, wrote that criticism should be “measured so as not to elevate his status”.

“As if a single careless manifestation of his could touch our great nation and hurt the feelings of our entire society.”

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The organiser of Inter Miami’s controversial exhibition match in Hong Kong – which saw football superstar Lionel Messi sit out the entire game – has announced a 50 per cent refund to fans amid pressure from officials and the public.

Tatler Asia, which organised last Sunday’s pre-season friendly, on Friday said it would make the refund available to those who purchased tickets through “official channels.” Details about the refund process will be provided in March, it added in a statement.

“We apologise to all those who were disappointed by the football match between the Hong Kong Team and Inter Miami CF on Sunday, February 4th. An event that we had hoped to be the pride of the city, and which we have worked very hard on for months, has become the source of great heartbreak,” the event organiser said.

Tatler Asia said the refund could cost them HK$56 million, resulting in a net loss of HK$43 million, according to unaudited figures attached to the statement.

The move came after a closed-door meeting between Tatler Asia and authorities, at which the latter suggested the 50 per cent refund, local media reported on Friday citing sources.

Last Sunday, the Argentinian football star disappointed more than 38,000 local fans and tourists when he sat out Inter Miami’s 4-1 win at the Hong Kong Stadium saying he was injured. Jeers, cursing and calls for refunds were heard from the stands, with some spectators leaving their seats before the match ended.

As of 2 pm on Friday, the Consumer Council had received a total of 1,303 complaints linked to the Inter Miami match. Among them, 1,038 were lodged by local consumers, while the remaining 265 cases were reported by tourists. The amount concerned stood at HK$8.92 million, with the biggest complaint involving around HK$82,000.

Tickets purchased through official channels were priced between HK$880 and HK$4,880.

The debacle over Messi’s no-show continued to swell throughout the week, with China’s state-run Global Times and Hong Kong senior government adviser Regina Ip crying foul over Messi’s failure to play due to an injury.

Global Times claimed there were “political motives” and “external forces deliberately [seeking] to embarrass Hong Kong” behind the incident in an editorial on Thursday. It urged the team to come up with a “reasonable explanation” before its scheduled visit to China for a pre-season friendly in March.

A day earlier, Ip blamed a “black hand” behind the no-show and said Hong Kong should never allow Messi to visit again. The term was used by China to allege foreign interference in Hong Kong’s protests in 2019.

Tatler Asia’s Friday announcement also came after a lawmaker threatened legal action unless compensation was offered. On Thursday, pro-establishment legislator Tang Ka-piu of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions appeared outside the Small Claims Tribunal and demanded Tatler Asia provide punters with refunds within a week.

Messi told a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday that “muscle discomfort” had prevented him from playing in the Hong Kong match. The World Cup-winning captain said he regretted the no-show and hoped to return to the city in the future.

He went on to play for over 30 minutes in Inter Miami’s last pre-season friendly in Tokyo with Vissel Kobe on Wednesday.

In Friday’s statement, Tatler Asia reiterated that it had urged Messi to engage with fans last Sunday despite failing to take to the pitch, but to no avail.

“The fact that Messi and Suárez played in Japan on February 7th feels like another slap in the face,” it added.

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A Hong Kong lawmaker has warned that the organiser of Inter Miami’s controversial exhibition match in Hong Kong must give refunds to spectators within a week or face legal action.

The controversy surrounding football superstar Lionel Messi’s no-show on the pitch last Sunday continued to spiral. On Thursday, Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (HKFTU) legislator Tang Ka-piu issued a “final notice” to event organiser Tatler Asia, telling the company to compensate and apologise to fans who bought tickets priced up to HK$4,880 to watch the World Cup-winning captain.

The lawmaker appeared outside the Small Claims Tribunal on Thursday morning to follow up on complaints linked to the match. If the organiser did not comply with the refund demand, Tang said he would initiate legal proceedings to “seek justice” for nearly 40,000 consumers and fans who watched the pre-season friendly.

“We hereby issue a final notice to your company, demanding that you refund consumers within one week, apologise to affected consumers and the wider fan base, and publicly disclose more details about the negotiations with International Miami Club,” read an open letter in Chinese which Tang wrote to Tatler Asia.

No-show

Last Sunday, the Argentinian football star disappointed more than 38,000 local fans and tourists when he sat out the 4-1 win at the Hong Kong Stadium. Jeers, cursing and calls for refunds were heard from the stands, with some spectators leaving their seats before the match ended.

The non-participation of Messi, who was said to be suffering from injury, sparked anger and frustration among fans and prompted the Hong Kong government to demand answers.

The authorities revealed that the football star was contracted to play for at least 45 minutes subject to fitness and safety considerations, while the organiser said it deeply regretted the no-show and would withdraw a bid for a HK$16 million government grant.

Tang on Thursday accused Tatler Asia of violating the Trade Descriptions Ordinance and said it had “misled” consumers with its promotional campaign. Messi was featured in a key position on the poster, while ticket sales platform Klook wrote that fans could watch the “astonishing skills” of Messi during the match.

“However, your company, as the organiser, ultimately failed to deliver on its promises, which raises suspicions of potentially violating the Trade Descriptions Ordinance by making false representations,” Tang said in the letter.

The legislator said Tatler Asia’s statement claimed that Messi and another football star Luis Suárez could not take part in the Hong Kong match due to injury. Messi told a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday that “muscle discomfort” had made it difficult for him to play.

Messi also managed to play for over 30 minutes in Inter Miami’s pre-season friendly in Tokyo on Wednesday.

“Star player Suarez started the match (in Tokyo) as part of the starting line-up, while Messi was substituted in as a reserve. The performances of these two players on the field were in no way indicative of being injured or unable to play,” Tang said.

Consumers suffered “serious losses” after buying expensive tickets to see this highly anticipated match, which “did not match the product description.” The lawmaker said Tatler Asia’s press conference on Monday evening, during which its CEO Michel Lamunière read out a statement without taking questions from reporters, was also “mind-boggling.”

As of 5 pm on Thursday, the Consumer Council had received a total of 1,178 complaints linked to the Inter Miami match. Among them, 944 were lodged by local consumers, while the remaining 234 cases were reported by tourists. The total amount concerned stood at HK$8,143,945.

‘Political motives’

China’s state-run Global Times warned in an editorial on Thursday of possible “political motives” behind Messi’s failure to play in the much-publicised match. It urged the team to come up with a “reasonable explanation” before its scheduled visit to China for a pre-season friendly in March.

Regina Ip, convenor of the government’s top advisory body the Executive Council and a pro-establishment lawmaker, blamed a “black hand” for Messi’s no-show. The term had been used by China to allege foreign interference in Hong Kong’s protests in 2019.

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China’s state-run Global Times has warned of possible “political motives” behind Lionel Messi’s failure to play in a much-publicised Hong Kong exhibition match, an absence which angered thousands of fans and the city’s government.

In an editorial on Thursday, the paper said the explanations offered by the Argentinian football icon for remaining on the bench and those given by his team Inter Miami were “not convincing.” It urged the team to come up with a “reasonable explanation” before its scheduled visit to China for a pre-season friendly in March.

“There is a lot of speculation about the true underlying reasons. One theory suggests that there might be political motives behind their actions, as Hong Kong intends to develop its mega-event based economy, and external forces deliberately seek to embarrass Hong Kong, ” the editorial said.

“Based on the unfolding events, it is not possible to entirely dismiss the possibility of such speculation.” Global Times did not specify who the external forces might be.

Founded in 1993, the Global Times is a state-run tabloid under the Communist Party’s flagship paper the People’s Daily. The tabloid is known for its hard-line editorials. Some analysts say the paper does not necessarily represent Beijing’s official line.

The Hong Kong Stadium on Sunday was filled with more than 38,000 local fans and tourists, who had bought tickets priced up to HK$4,880 to see their hero Messi. But jeers and cursing were heard from the stands towards the end of the match as Messi sat out the 4-1 win.

The government said it was “extremely disappointed” that Messi neither played in the Hong Kong friendly nor offered an explanation to the fans. Tatler Asia, host of the event, announced on Tuesday that it deeply regretted the no-show and would withdraw a bid for a HK$16 million grant from the Hong Kong government.

Inter Miami left for Japan on Monday. Messi said in a press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday that “muscle discomfort” had made it difficult for him to play and he hoped to return to Hong Kong “whenever he can. ” 

On Wednesday, Messi played for over 30 minutes in Inter Miami’s pre-season friendly in Tokyo.

In an response to HKFP, the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau urged the event organisers and the team to explain why Messi was fit to play just three days after his Hong Kong trip.

“Three days later, Messi was actively playing in Japan, engaging in intense physical activities on the field for a considerable amount of time. Hong Kong citizens have many questions regarding this situation,” the bureau said in Chinese. “The government hopes that the organiser and the team can provide a reasonable explanation to address their concerns.”

‘Black hand’

Regina Ip, convenor of the government’s top advisory body the Executive Council and a pro-establishment lawmaker, blamed a “black hand” for Messi’s no-show.

“Hong Kong people hate Messi, Inter Miami, and the black hand behind them, for the deliberate and calculated snub to Hong Kong,” Ip wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday night.

China blamed “black hands” supposedly working for foreign forces for Hong Kong’s mass protests in 2019.

In another tweet, the politician said Hong Kong should never allow Messi to visit again.

Asked to clarify references to foreign interference, Ip told HKFP: “I have no hard evidence, but Messi behaved as though he was under some political directive not to play, not to shake hands with Hong Kong’s CE, not to speak, or smile or wave to Hong Kong’s fans. He apologised in Tokyo. Why not in Hong Kong?”

A viral clip showed Messi appearing to avoid shaking hands with Chief Executive John Lee at the stadium as players lined up for handshakes.

Ip added that questions over Messi’s motivation should be directed at the footballer, the team and its head David Beckham.

When HKFP approached Chief Executive John Lee’s office about claims of political motives, a government spokesperson said: “The Government urges Tatler Asia and Inter Miami CF to provide a reasonable explanation to clear all doubts arising from Messi not being able to play the game in Hong Kong on February 4 and his active participation in the game in Tokyo 3 days later.”

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Hong Kong authorities are urging the organiser of an exhibition match to explain star footballer Lionel Messi’s absence from the pitch, Chief Executive John Lee has said, as the city’s consumer watchdog received over 400 complaints over the captain’s no-show.

Two days after the the 36-year-old World Cup-winning captain was benched over a reported hamstring injury, prompting boos and calls for refunds from fans, Chief Executive John Lee on Tuesday told reporters that the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau is ordering the organiser, Tatler Asia, to address the incident.

Lee said Tatler had failed to meet the expectations of the public, adding that “the performance of the organiser has a significant impact on Hong Kong’s image and reputation.”

“The government also has the responsibility to ensure public funding is spent appropriately, especially when the event is sponsored by the government,” Lee said, speaking in Cantonese.

He added that he shared fans’ frustrations that Messi did not play.

Tatler Asia will withdraw its application for a HK$16 million government subsidy, chair Michel Lamunière told reporters on Monday. But despite the grant withdrawal, Lee said, Tatler still had a “social responsibility” to explain what went wrong.

Lee also called on Tatler to explain why it had not heeded suggestions and demands made by government officials.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung said on Monday that the government had requested the organiser to “explore other remedies,” including having Messi appear on the pitch to interact with fans and receive the trophy, but to no avail.

Lee also said the authorities would review the government’s role as a supervisory body over “mega events” in the future.

Complaints to Consumer Council

Meanwhile, the Consumer Council had received a total of 401 complaints over the Messi fiasco as of 3 pm on Tuesday.

A total of 342 complaints were from local residents and 59 were from tourists. The complaints involved more than HK$2.59 million, with the cases averaging HK$6,459. The largest claim amounted to HK$23,839.

The Consumer Council’s Executive Director Gilly Wong told RTHK on Tuesday that the incident may have involved “misleading omissions,” as consumers were not notified of Messi’s absence on the pitch in advance.

“However, the organiser could argue that the information was already widely reported in the media. That would be common knowledge to the fans, and they would be aware of the risks,” Wong said in Cantonese.

Wong added that aggrieved football fans could file claims for expenses in addition to the match tickets, including airfare, train tickets, and hotel stays. She suggested that they hold onto their transaction records.

Shortly after Lee’s remarks on Tuesday morning, Messi told reporters in Tokyo – where he had just arrived with Inter Miami – that he did not feel fit to play on Sunday, even though medical examinations showed he was not injured.

He said that he felt that something wrong with his body during the first half of his match while playing in Saudi Arabia last Monday.

“After the second [half] I did an MRI and no injuries were found, but I still did not feel comfortable,” he said in Spanish at a press conference in Tokyo. Inter Miami is expected to play a friendly match with local team Vissel Kobe in Japan.

“In Hong Kong, there was such a big crowd. We really wanted to play but unfortunately it was difficult,” he said, through an interpreter. “I understand that people were looking forward to it so I do hope that there will be another opportunity in the future that I will be able to play in Hong Kong.”

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Organisers of a Hong Kong football match which drew boos after star man Lionel Messi failed to play said Monday they deeply regretted the no-show, and would withdraw a bid for a HK$16 million (US$2 million) government grant.

Tatler Asia’s CEO read out a statement Monday evening confirming Messi had been contracted to take the field, unless injured, in a pre-season friendly in Hong Kong.

Instead the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, who has a leg muscle strain, stayed on the bench throughout Inter Miami’s 4-1 win against a Hong Kong select XI.

The match ended with Messi, his Inter Miami team and club co-owner David Beckham being booed off by nearly 40,000 irate fans who had shelled out large sums to see the World Cup-winning captain play.

Fans who had paid upwards of 1,000 Hong Kong dollars (US$125) to see Messi chanted “Refund!”, gave thumbs-down signs and drowned out Beckham with jeers as he tried to thank the crowd.

“Tatler Asia deeply regrets the disappointing ending to what was an exciting occasion,” said Michel Lamuniere, chairman and CEO, in the statement.

Tatler Asia "spent the second half urging the Inter Miami CF leadership to instruct Messi to address the fans, to no avail," he said. Video: Channel C. pic.twitter.com/DxD8rMH0iM

— Hong Kong Free Press HKFP (@hkfp) February 5, 2024

“(Tatler Asia) has decided to officially withdraw its application for… the HK$16 million government grant.”

Lamuniere said the organisers were made aware that Messi would not play only at half-time, after he had been named among the substitutes, and “Tatler Asia immediately informed the government”.

That appeared to contradict Hong Kong’s sports minister who told reporters earlier Monday that government officials had been repeatedly assured Messi would play, even after half-time.

It was not until 10 minutes from the final whistle that secretary for culture, sports and tourism Kevin Yeung said he and officials were informed that Messi’s injury — inflammation of an abductor muscle — would keep him out.

“We immediately requested (the organisers) to explore other remedies, such as Messi appearing on the field to interact with his fans and receiving the trophy,” Yeung said.

“Unfortunately, as you all see, this did not work out.”

Hong Kong’s consumer council said it had received 38 complaints from 29 residents and nine overseas visitors about the match by midday on Monday.

They involved a total of HK$216,964 spent, with the largest individual complaint amounting to HK$22,338.

“Most of the promotional materials were using photos of certain players… so it was reasonable for consumers to expect that player to participate,” the council said in a statement.

“Consumers can also seek independent legal advice on whether the incident is suspected of breaching a contract or could be subject to civil lawsuits.”

Inter Miami and Messi are due to play the final pre-season match of their tour against Japan’s Vissel Kobe in Tokyo on Wednesday. It is not clear whether Messi will recover in time.

The 36-year-old had played just six minutes in Miami’s previous match in Saudi Arabia. The new MLS season in the United States starts on February 21.

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Argentine football icon Lionel Messi was contracted to play for at least 45 minutes on Sunday, Hong Kong’s sports minister, who attended the friendly, told the press on Monday. However, the 36-year-old world-cup winning captain was benched over a hamstring injury, prompting boos and calls for refunds from fans.

On Sunday, the government expressed “disappointment” after warning that it may reclaim HK$16 million of funding awarded to the pre-season friendly event featuring the footballer, who last played in the city in 2014.

The Hong Kong Stadium on Sunday was filled with more than 38,000 local football fans and tourists, who had bought tickets priced up to HK$4,880 to see their hero. But jeers and cursing were heard from the stands towards the end of the match as Messi sat out the 4-1 win.

“The Government, as well as all football fans, are extremely disappointed that Messi could neither play in the friendly match, nor explain to the fans in-person upon request,” a late-night statement from the government read.

The way the event organiser Tatler XFEST Hong Kong and Inter Miami handled the situation “could not meet the expectations of fans,” especially those who came all the way to the city for the match, the government said.

The match, which was labelled as an “M” mark major international sporting event, was granted HK$15 million as a matching grant, and HK$1 million as a grant for the venue. The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and the Major Sports Events Committee would ask the organiser to take responsibility, the government said.

Organiser was urged to ‘explore other remedies’

On Monday, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung told reporters that “one of the key terms of our funding agreement with Tatler Asia was for Messi to participate in the match for at least 45 minutes, subject to fitness and safety considerations.”

“Yesterday before the match began, the organiser Tatler Asia still reaffirmed that Messi was going to play in the second half. When the second half began without Messi, we immediately followed up with the organiser Tatler Asia, requesting them to liaise with Inter Miami to arrange Messi to play as soon as possible, but was later informed by Tatler Asia that Messi could not play due to injury.”

Yeung said the government reiterated its request for Messi to play in the match about 10 minutes before the match ended. But the organiser once again confirmed that the Argentine player could not participate.

The government then requested the organiser to “explore other remedies,” Yeung said, including having Messi appear on the pitch to interact with fans and receive the trophy. But these requests “did not work out,” the official said.

“We will take into account the experience of this incident, and will further work with the Major Sports Events Committee to further improve our ‘M’ mark system.“

The government “have not paid any money yet” for the agreed sponsorship, Yeung said, and the authorities would liaise with the organiser in the coming weeks to evaluate the performance of the event and decide on what to do with the funding.

The minister did not give a direct response when he was asked if the government felt it had been “scammed.” He later said it would be difficult to know in advance whether a player could play due to an injury, unless the injury was very serious.

‘Extreme disappointment’

Around half an hour before Sunday’s second government statement, Tatler XFEST Hong Kong expressed “extreme disappointment” over the non-participation of Messi and another star player Luis Suárez in the match. The organisers said they had no information prior the match that both players would be benched.

“We, alongside all football fans who attended that match, had been eagerly anticipating Messi’s and Suárez’s participation and share in the disappointment felt by everyone watching,” the statement read.

They added: “Messi and Suárez were deemed unfit to play by their team’s medical department, to everyone’s, including ours, disappointment.”

Local media reported on Sunday citing sources that the Inter Miami team was originally invited to visit the Kai Tak Sports Park on Monday. However, according to Yeung, the team would leave the city on Monday afternoon.

On Monday, Inter Miami promoted on X, formerly known as Twitter, the next stop of their international tour, where the team is set to play against Vissel Kobe in Tokyo, Japan on Wednesday. Some people left comments urging the club to inform fans in advance if Messi was not going to take part.

“Announce Messi’s injury report as soon as possible. He is injured and you just want to use him his name to make money,” one X user commented.

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By Daniel Hicks

Lionel Messi and David Beckham were booed on Sunday after the Argentina superstar sat out Inter Miami’s pre-season friendly in Hong Kong.

The World Cup-winning captain, who has a hamstring strain, stayed rooted to the bench throughout the 4-1 friendly win against a Hong Kong select XI.

It brought a show of anger from the near-capacity crowd of 38,323 who had paid upwards of 1,000 Hong Kong dollars (US$125) to see their hero, and in many cases a lot more.

Halfway through the second-half, chants of “We want Messi” rose around the Hong Kong Stadium from fans desperate to see the greatest footballer of his generation in the much-hyped exhibition game.

Didn’t last long 😅 pic.twitter.com/cDysYCrtTZ

— Mark Thomas 😷 (@markhamspon) February 4, 2024

The booing became louder during the last 10 minutes when it became clear that the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner would not make even the briefest of cameos.

The jeers rose to a crescendo at the final whistle after former Liverpool and Barcelona striker Luis Suarez also failed to take to the pitch because of a knee injury.

Miami co-owner Beckham was drowned out by booing as he tried to thank the crowd “for their incredible support” while fans signalled their anger with thumbs-down gestures.

“We understand the disappointment of the fans for the absence of Leo (Messi) and Luis Suarez,” Miami coach Gerardo Martino told reporters, explaining the club’s medical team had taken the decision after an assessment on Sunday morning.

“We understand a lot of fans are very disappointed and we ask for their forgiveness.

“We wish we could have sent Leo and Luis on for at least a while but the risk was too big.”

The 36-year-old Messi played just six minutes in Miami’s last match, in Saudi Arabia on Thursday, and now faces a race against time to be fit for the new MLS season which starts on February 21.

In a statement on Sunday night, the Hong Kong government said: “Regarding Messi not playing the match today, the Government, as well as all football fans, are extremely disappointed about the organiser’s arrangement. The organiser owes all football fans an explanation.”

‘Messi mania’

It was a bitter end to days of Hong Kong “Messi mania” in the lead-up to the match.

Tens of thousands turned up just to watch him train on Saturday, where he did little more than jog and stretch.

The team hotel was besieged by hundreds of fans trying to glimpse their hero, and a traditional junk boat was cruising around Victoria harbour with Messi’s face plastered across sails.

Messi shirts had been flying off the shelves after tickets for the match sold out in an hour when they went on sale in December.

Miami’s starting line-up featured neither of their other former Barcelona stars, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.

Robert Taylor opened the scoring for the MLS side in the 40th minute with a delightful right-foot curling shot from the left-hand edge of the box.

Two minutes later Hong Kong’s Henri Anier laced a left-foot finish home to make it 1-1.

Miami regained the lead after half-time when Lawson Sunderland found the target from close range and Leonardo Campana increased the lead in the 56th minute.

Busquets and Alba finally made an appearance from the bench after 62 minutes to a smattering of cheers before Ryan Sailor rounded off the scoring for Miami in the 85th minute with a glancing header.

It was Miami’s first win in five matches on their globe-trotting pre-season tour.

They now move on to Japan for a friendly against Vissel Kobe on Wednesday before flying back to the United States.

Additional reporting: Tom Grundy.

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Tens of thousands of football fans turned out to see Lionel Messi train with his Inter Miami teammates in Hong Kong on Saturday, as “Messi mania” took hold of the city.

Police closed off streets around the Hong Kong Stadium as fans flocked to catch sight of the Argentina superstar, the greatest player of his generation, ahead of a match on Sunday.

Hours before Inter Miami strode onto the pitch for an open training session, expectant fans were forming long queues outside the 40,000-capacity venue, chanting the World Cup-winning captain’s name.

The Major League Soccer club is co-owned by David Beckham, who also put in an appearance to huge roars from an almost full house.

But the roof was nearly blown off a few minutes later by the ovation the 36-year-old Messi received as he emerged to join his teammates on the pitch for a gentle workout.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner spent much of the hour-long session doing stretches as he protected a niggling hamstring injury, though he did join 80 lucky Hong Kong schoolchildren for a kickabout during a coaching clinic that followed.

Soon after, Beckham took charge of teaching the kids some skills.

But it was Messi that the thousands of fans had mainly come to see, ahead of a friendly against a Hong Kong Select XI on Sunday.

“It’s the first time in my life I see Messi,” said 17-year-old Chinese student Li Weiyi, who had travelled from Shenzhen, across the border in mainland China.

“I am feeling very excited. He means a lot to me. He brought me to the football world, he made me love football.”

Most fans wore blue-and-white-striped Argentina or pink Inter Miami shirts.

‘The best ever’

“He is very skilful, very enjoyable to watch him play,” said Sally Liu, a 28-year-old student from Hong Kong who was sporting a T-shirt commemorating Messi and Argentina’s 2022 World Cup win in Qatar.

“He is playing now in Miami so I will not have many chances to watch him in the future. This is my last chance.

“He is the best ever. I cried when they became world champions.”

On Friday, hundreds had gathered outside the team hotel in the south of the city hoping to catch a glimpse of their hero.

A traditional junk boat was cruising around the harbour with Messi’s face plastered across sails in the pink colours of Inter Miami.

Tickets for Sunday’s match sold out in an hour when they went on sale in December, and sports retailers reported that Messi shirts had been flying off the shelves.

Messi has been nursing a tight hamstring on the team’s hectic tour, which will have seen them play six games in 19 days ahead of the MLS season starting on February 21.

He came on only for the last few minutes of a 6-0 friendly defeat to Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia on Thursday night.

“We will assess each of the players after training because we have been playing a lot of pre-season games,” Miami head coach Gerardo Martino told reporters.

“The aspiration is that Leo (Messi) can play as many minutes as possible.”

Martino is also desperate to register a first win on Miami’s globe-trotting pre-season tour.

They began with a 0-0 draw in El Salvador against the national side, then lost 1-0 at fellow MLS team FC Dallas.

Miami travelled to Saudi Arabia last week and lost 4-3 to Al Hilal before the chastening loss to Al Nassr.

The tour concludes with a friendly against Vissel Kobe in Japan on Wednesday.

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Hong Kong has withdrawn from an esports tournament at the AFC Asian Cup after a computer programme for the event failed to include “China” as part of the city’s name, the Football Association of Hong Kong, China has announced.

The city pulled out of the AFC eAsian Cup in the Qatari capital of Doha after the organiser failed to fix the name display in Konami’s eFootball™ 2024 gaming programme, the association said in a statement on Thursday.

The local governing body of football said on Thursday it noticed on Monday that the game was not showing “Hong Kong, China” as the city’s name. The withdrawal came after the problem remained unresolved despite continuous negotiations with the organisers over the past few days.

“[B]ased on the guidelines and advice from the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China, we have informed AFC our decision to withdraw from the AFC eAsian Cup 2023,” the statement read.

Local media reported on Monday that the Hong Kong team was informed about the withdrawal three hours before the start of the competition.

Hong Kong was set to play against Iran and the United Arab Emirates in Group C at the inaugural esports tournament which began on Thursday. The organiser’s livestream on YouTube on Thursday showed that “Hong Kong, China” was still listed as a contestant.

The livestream also included an earlier interview with Hong Kong team coach Jay Wong. He said the team had rented a party room to practise and share tactics, and asked the local gaming community for tips on how perform better in a two-versus-two game.

The city competes under the name “Hong Kong, China” at international sporting tournaments, including the Olympic Games.

Hong Kong’s sports federation issued a series of guidelines in 2022 and 2023 after multiple national anthem blunders at international sporting events. The organisers of some events had played the 2019 protest song Glory to Hong Kong instead of China’s March of the Volunteers.

Athletes were told to boycott awards ceremonies if event organisers refused to let the team leader verify the Chinese national anthem or regional flags on site.

This year’s on-field AFC Asian Cup marked the first time the Hong Kong football team had reached the finals in 56 years. The team made a tearful exit last week after it lost all three matches in the group stage.

In September last year, Hong Kong won a silver medal in the esports event at the Hangzhou Asian Games, after the team lost to China in the game Dream Three Kingdoms 2. It was the first time for the quadrennial multisport event to include esports as a medal event.

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The former head of China’s top football body Chen Xuyuan is to stand trial for bribery on Monday, Beijing’s state media said, as an anti-corruption drive sweeps up once-major players in the sport.

Chen — who as boss of the Chinese Football Association (CFA) once promised to turn a page on the corruption scandals that have plagued the sport — was placed under investigation last February for “serious violations of discipline and the law”.

Chen was indicted in September for corruption, confessing in the TV documentary to having accepted large sums from those wishing to get in his good graces.

This month he appeared in a televised documentary in which former Chinese national football team coach Li Tie said he paid Chen two million yuan (US$278,600) in bribes to secure the top job.

“Fans can accept the fact that the state of Chinese football is bad,” Chen said.

“But they cannot forgive corruption,” he said.

“I would like to deeply apologise to all Chinese fans.”

Football fan President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China not only to host the World Cup, but win it.

But that goal appears further away than ever after a corruption probe and the national team’s worst Asian Cup performance in history this month.

Around 10 senior leaders and executives of the CFA have also been brought down in recent years, including Chen.

He goes on trial Monday at the Intermediate People’s Court of Huangshi City in central China’s Hubei Province, the state-run Xinhua news agency said, citing the court.

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By Peter Stebbings

Aleksandar Jankovic looks set to pay the price for China’s worst Asian Cup in history, but the problems afflicting Chinese football run far deeper than the coach.

China had hoped to sneak past the group stage in Qatar as one of the four best third-placed teams, but Syria’s win over India snuffed out that remote chance and Jankovic’s men were gone at the first hurdle.

In truth, China did not deserve to progress to the knockout rounds, having failed to score a goal in any of their three matches.

“Chinese football slides into the abyss,” was the headline in the Oriental Sports Daily.

Their doomed campaign began with a 0-0 draw against debutants Tajikistan, followed by the same outcome versus Lebanon.

That put it all on their final group game on Monday against holders Qatar and even though the hosts had qualified and fielded a much-changed team, China lost 1-0 to leave their hopes hanging by a thread.

They were left to rue several missed chances in the first half and afterwards the Serbian Jankovic, who has only been in the post permanently for 11 months, sounded like a man expecting the sack.

“There are two types of coaches in general — those who have been fired and those who will be fired,” the 51-year-old said.

Reports in China on Wednesday said Jankovic was set to be sacked for what was their fourth time exiting in the group phase, but in those previous campaigns they at least won a game and scored.

‘Glaring portrayal’

On the eve of the tournament, China’s players were sat down to watch a television programme in which their former coach, Li Tie, said he had paid bribes to get the job and was involved in domestic match-fixing.

His former boss Chen Xuyuan, who had been the Chinese Football Association president, also appeared grim-faced in the programme. He is also detained and under investigation for corruption.

Back on the pitch, one of the few players to emerge with much credit was Tyias Browning, the England-born former Everton defender who was naturalised to play for China.

China were still looking to Wu Lei, the 32-year-old forward and once their talisman, for goals.

He was dropped for the game against Qatar and Wei Shihao was brought in, but he fluffed his lines and the big chances.

As Chinese fans and media soaked up the latest letdown, state media pinpointed the lack of youth talent as among the biggest of the many issues holding back football in the country.

Football fan President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China not only to host the World Cup, but win it. That far-fetched notion has been quietly forgotten.

It was not lost on the state-backed Global Times that the national side’s “historic low” came in the same week that Chinese Super League club Shenzhen FC disbanded because of financial problems.

Days earlier, Dalian Pro — managed between 2019 and 2021 by Rafa Benitez, in the days when the CSL was flush with cash — also ceased to exist.

“The club dissolutions and the national team’s shameful performance offer us a glaring portrayal of the current Chinese soccer landscape,” the Global Times said.

It accused clubs of wasting money on foreign players and coaches in the past in the “blind pursuit of short-term victories” when they should have been investing in youth.

But it also noted that the problems run deeper than that. As many as 39 professional teams have gone bust since 2020, it said, most notably Jiangsu FC soon after they won the CSL.

Many relied on single investors, usually real-estate companies, and when they faced a cash crunch they simply pulled the plug.

Time’s up?

China’s squad may have been limited and ageing, but many pundits felt they were still better than they showed in Qatar and pointed the finger at former China youth coach Jankovic.

“Outsiders believed that the Chinese team should at least qualify from the group stage, but who would have thought that they would not score a single goal in three games?” columnist Ma Dexing wrote in the Oriental Sports Daily.

“People don’t care why this situation occurs in Chinese football,” he said of the challenges that Jankovic was undoubtedly presented with.

“But one thing is for sure: the current coach won’t do.”

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Hong Kong’s dreams of making history by reaching the knockout rounds of the AFC Asian Cup finals in Qatar were dashed on Tuesday following a 3-0 defeat by Palestine.

But several hundred fans cheered on as some footballers made a tearful exit from the tournament. Hong Kong last reached the finals 56 years ago.

The Group C match on Tuesday at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium was crucial to both Hong Kong and Palestine, as both teams were bent on booking a historic appearance in the elimination rounds of the quadrennial tournament.

Oday Dabbagh put Palestine in the lead in the 12th minute with a header, leaving Hong Kong trailing 0-1 by half-time.

Palestine scored their second goal in the 48th minute, while Dabbagh further expanded the lead to 3-0 in the 56th minute.

Hong Kong could have narrowed the gap near the closing stage with a penalty, but Everton Camargo’s powerful kick landed on the crossbar and bounded out. Palestine celebrated their 3-0 victory and their unprecedented achievement of advancing to the knockout stage.

Tuesday’s defeat marked the end of Hong Kong’s journey at AFC Asian Cup finals after losing all three matches in the group stage.

Some representatives of the city teared up as they bowed and thanked supporters who brought banners and towels with slogans reading: “We are Hong Kong,” “Hong Kong team kicks ass” and “Hong Kong Add Oil.”

Speaking to Hong Kong media after the match, goalkeeper Yapp Hung-fai shed tears and said he could feel the support and involvement of Hongkongers at this year’s AFC Asian Cup finals. Although the team was unable to make it to the next stage, he was still very touched that Hong Kong fans fervently cheered for them after their defeat.

“I have represented Hong Kong for so long. It was the first time for fans, the media and the whole of Hong Kong to participate so eagerly in the finals week… It feels like the whole of Hong Kong is really involved and engaged this time,” Yapp said in Cantonese.

Another Hong Kong team member – Matt Orr – vowed to return to the Asian tournament in the future.

“It’s just given us the taste of the pinnacle of Asian football. We definitely want to be back here… We’ve learned that we can compete with some of the best teams in Asia,” Orr said in a post-match interview.

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A 30-year-old man has died after finishing a half-marathon during the city’s largest annual long-distance running event, the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon (SCHKM), on Sunday.

The man was spotted sitting down on the platform at Tin Hau MTR station – near the finishing point of the race – by MTR staff at around 11.50 am, a spokesperson from the train company told Ming Pao on Monday. After MTR staff approached the man and asked if he needed any help, he said he needed some rest but was otherwise fine.

He was found passed out near the platform at 12.12 pm. The man died after being admitted to Ruttonjee Hospital in Wan Chai for emergency treatment.

Over 67,000 runners participated in the marathon’s various events – a full marathon, a half marathon, or a 10-kilometre run – this year as race quotas returned to pre-pandemic levels.

Responding to an enquiry from HKFP, the Hospital Authority said that 44 runners had been admitted to emergency facilities at public hospitals by 12 pm on Monday. Among them, one had died, one was in a critical condition, four were in a serious situation and eight were stable. Thirty had been released from hospital.

A male runner who ran in the 10-kilometre race was found unconscious after suffering a cardiac arrest near the finishing line, local media reported. His condition improved after receiving on-site emergency treatment and being admitted to hospital.

The event organiser, the Hong Kong, China Association of Athletics Affiliates and sponsor Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited expressed their condolences to the family of the runner who died.

“The Organiser is contacting his family according to the information provided by the runner to understand their needs, and is ready to provide them with suitable assistance,” a statement posted on the marathon’s official Facebook page said. “The Organiser reminds all runners to closely monitor their post-race physical condition and allow themselves recovery after the race.”

At noon on Sunday, organisers said that 842 people had been injured during and after the marathon.

Hidden heart disease

Axel Siu, former dean of the Hong Kong College of Emergency Medicine, said in Ming Pao on Monday that runners should seek help if they experienced chest discomfort, dizziness, difficulty breathing, or an unstable heart beat that last for more than five minutes.

Six runners who participated in the Hong Kong marathon over the past 20 years had died, including the young man who died on Sunday.

Louie Lobo, associate head of the  Department of Health and Physical Education, told Oriental Daily on Monday that many of these deaths were related to congenital factors, such as hidden heart problems.

Lobo suggested that runners should undergo regular cardiovascular examinations before long-distance running if they have any family history of heart disease.

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A Hong Kong golf course at the centre of a controversial public housing plan has won a UNESCO conservation award, with the agency citing its biodiversity and “holistic management.”

The Fanling Golf Course was among the winners of an Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), announced last week. The honours took into account the entries’ technical achievements, sustainability and “understanding of place.”

In a social media post published last Friday, the Hong Kong Golf Club – which operates the Fanling Golf Course – said it was “absolutely delighted” by the news.

“We are thrilled by this award and our utmost thanks to UNESCO for this incredible recognition,” Club Captain Andy Kwok said. “But this really is an award for the whole of Hong Kong and our city’s efforts in preserving important cultural heritage sites.”

UNESCO said the golf course “epitomiz[ed] a commendable undertaking for environmental stewardship,” adding that it had considered its ecological value and biodiversity in its conservation management plan.

“Moreover, this project created a narrative and a range of activities for a wide public, inclusive of golfers and non-golfers alike, and regardless of age and membership standing,” UNESCO added.

‘Forefront of heritage preservation’

The award comes as the government presses on with its plan to turn 9.5 hectares of the Fanling Golf Course into public housing. The area was part of 32 hectares of land that was returned to the government in September after its lease to the club expired.

Supporters of the club have expressed opposition to the project, arguing that the golf course is a world-class facility that should be preserved.

The golf club said in July that it had applied for the UNESCO recognition, a move seen as a bid to rally support for the club amid the government’s plans. In a press release announcing its award entry, the club said the Fanling Golf Course opened in 1911 and is the oldest championship golf course in Asia.

“FGC’s century-old history and high cultural value presents an opportunity for the Club to showcase Hong Kong as a multi-cultural international metropolis which is at the forefront of heritage preservation,” the statement read.

Earlier this year, the golf club launched a legal bid to challenge the government’s approval of an environmental report – which is necessary for the project to proceed – on the impact of the housing plan. It argued that there was a lack of public consultation and a failure to account for ecological concerns.

The court later granted a suspension of the approved report pending a verdict of the judicial review which will be heard in May next year.

Judicial reviews are considered by the Court of First Instance and examine the decision-making processes of administrative bodies. Issues under review must be shown to affect the wider public interest.

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The world of Chinese chess is in uproar over rumours of cheating and a bad behaviour scandal that saw the national champion stripped of his title Monday after a victory celebration ended with him defecating in a hotel bathtub.

Xiangqi, or Chinese chess, has been hugely popular for hundreds of years across Asia — and 48-year-old Yan Chenglong beat dozens of contenders last week to win the title of “Xiangqi King” at a national tournament hosted by the Chinese Xiangqi Association (CXA).

But his joy was short-lived, with the CXA on Monday announcing that Yan would have his title revoked and prize money confiscated after had been caught “disrupting public order” and displaying “extremely bad character”.

The association was also forced to address rumours circulating online that Yan had cheated during the competition by using anal beads equipped with wireless transmitters to send and receive signals.

Yan allegedly clenched and unclenched rhythmically to communicate information about the chess board via code to a computer, which then sent back instructions on what moves to make in the form of vibrations, according to reports circulating on the Chinese social site Weibo.

“Based on our understanding of the situation, it is currently impossible to prove that Yan engaged in cheating via ‘anal beads’ as speculated on social media,” the CXA said.

However, he was still stripped of his title and banned from playing for a year after his celebrations went wayward.

“Yan consumed alcohol with others in his room on the night of the 17th, and then he defecated in the bathtub of the room he was staying in on the 18th, in an act that damaged hotel property, violated public order and good morals, had a negative impact on the competition and the event of Xiangqi, and was of extremely bad character,” the association said in a statement.

The association did not disclose the amount of prize money Yan was forfeiting, but Xiangqi tournaments often promise winners tens of thousands of yuan (thousands of dollars).

The CXA had published a social media post last week congratulating Yan and other players for their “spectacularly heated high-level gameplay”.

The post included a photo of Yan on stage, flanked by two runners up, proudly holding up his prize certificate.

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Beijing, China

Organisers of a 2021 ultramarathon in northwest China during which 21 runners died in extreme weather conditions have been sentenced to years in prison for their roles, state media reported.

Five individuals involved in planning the ill-fated event were issued jail terms ranging from three years to five and a half years by a court in Baiyin, a city in Gansu province, where the deaths occurred, state news agency Xinhua reported late Friday.

In May 2021, the 100-kilometre (62-mile) cross-country mountain race turned deadly as freezing rain, high winds and hail hit the competitors.

The five defendants were convicted for “organizing a large-scale event that led to a significant safety incident”, said Xinhua.

In the provincial capital of Lanzhou, an official was sentenced to four years and 10 months for “dereliction of duty and bribery”, and another to three and a half years for “dereliction of duty” alone, Xinhua added.

Long-distance running and other extreme sports have been booming in China in recent years, as the government promotes exercise for all ages, though slipshod organisation has repeatedly caused problems.

The 2021 incident raised questions over why organisers apparently ignored the incoming extreme weather and led to renewed calls for tighter laws surrounding sporting events.

In the wake of the deaths, Beijing’s General Administration of Sport announced that events without national safety standards would be suspended, including mountain trail running, wingsuit flying and ultra-long distance running.

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Shanghai, China

Hundreds of athletes as young as seven are undergoing military training in Shanghai designed to instill discipline and “good fighting ability”, the Chinese city said.

The athletes will “deeply study” the Chinese military’s “sense of standards and combat spirit”, Shanghai’s sports bureau said.

Chinese football teams have previously undergone similar training, which is largely performative and part of a wider campaign to promote Communist Party values.

President Xi Jinping said this year that China must enhance its readiness for “actual combat”.

He Youxiao, head coach of a men’s gymnastics team participating in the training this week, said that the age range of his athletes spanned from seven to 25.

“No matter how old or young, everybody deeply cherishes this opportunity,” said He, according to a news report by the sports bureau.

The training started on Monday and is scheduled to last until next Tuesday. It involves 932 athletes from 11 sports centres across the city.

It is intended to “strengthen the sports teams’ organisational discipline and teamwork, helping Shanghai sports create an iron army”, said the report.

“From dawn until broad daylight, the athletes move neatly and in unison, their youth military uniforms showing off a young and elegant manner.”

China last month adopted a new education law seeking to impart a “patriotic spirit” in China’s youth, according to state media at the time.

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Honiara, Solomon Islands

A years-long saga mixing big-power rivalry, Chinese money and delayed national elections will reach a conclusion of sorts when the Pacific Games open on Sunday in the remote Solomon Islands.

About 5,000 athletes and officials from 24 Pacific nations are descending on the poverty-stricken capital Honiara for the Olympic-style event.

Over the following fortnight athletes will compete for gold in two dozen sports from archery and bodybuilding to va’a, or canoe racing.

It is the biggest sports event ever hosted by the Solomons, a string of islands about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 miles) off Australia’s northeast coast.

Yet the intrigue extends far beyond sport.

The archipelago has been in the crosshairs of US-China tensions since Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare switched diplomatic recognition to Beijing from Taiwan in 2019.

China has rapidly strengthened ties since, signing a secretive security pact with the Solomons last year and sparking Western fears that Beijing could be seeking a strategic military foothold.

China is also competing with US allies including Australia for diplomatic influence, notably financing a swathe of new facilities for the Games.

China has financed and built five of the sports facilities, including a 10,000-seat arena with a gleaming blue running track to host the athletics events — a sharp contrast to the dusty roads and flimsy homes in Honiara’s poorer suburbs.

“The centrepiece of the Games is a huge and very impressive stadium, so that reflects the very concrete engagement by China,” said Meg Keen, director of the Sydney-based Lowy Institute think tank’s Pacific Islands programme.

Ramped-up security

China has ploughed in about $53 million for the sporting venues, which it has committed to maintain for two years, Keen told AFP.

It is also spending an unknown amount in areas such as additional policing and security equipment, she said.

To ensure the Games pass peacefully, Australia has sent 100 police officers and 350 defence personnel to assist the local force.

About 90 military personnel from New Zealand are also helping.

China is set to expand its small security team of about half a dozen people in Honiara, Keen said, estimating it could double in size, though no figures have been released.

Organisers put the cost of hosting the Games at about 2.5 billion Solomon Islands dollars ($295 million).

But the island state’s opposition says the multi-sports event is also exacting a democratic price.

In 2022, Sogavare pushed a change to the constitution through parliament, shifting elections from the end of this year until sometime before the end of April 2024.

He argued that the country could not host the Games and general elections in quick succession.

‘Terrible judgement’

Opposition leader Matthew Wale called that “a terrible excuse”.

“I don’t think the Games themselves are the real grounds for the postponement,” he told AFP, accusing the government of acting out of fear it would lose the election.

“I think they are assuming that people will feel good from the Games and therefore vote them back into office.”

Wale urged the premier to be transparent about its security pact with China.

“We don’t want to arouse the wrong attention from anybody. Signing secret military or security agreements, which the prime minister did, puts us in that place,” Wale said.

“America has no idea what it is, so they need to be prepared for all options in case there is something with military implications.

“That is a terrible judgement by the prime minister.”

The money invested in sports facilities would have been better spent on healthcare and education, Wale said.

“The Games have been a magnet to attract government resources to be poured into Honiara, so there is a sense of general neglect of rural areas,” he added.

Mixed reactions

Anticipation is building in Honiara on the eve of the Games, but the event’s media co-ordinator Jeremy Inifiri admits there is also some scepticism from the public.

“To be frank, there are still mixed reactions,” he told AFP.

“There was a lot of negativity, especially on social media, mostly over China and the geo-politics.”

Test events at the new stadium attracted crowds of around 6,000, he said.

“Slowly, everyone is getting into the feel of sports — starting to accept that the facilities are here for our benefit, not for political benefits,” he said.

For veteran weightlifter Jenly Wini, who won the Solomons’ first-ever Commonwealth Games medal in 2018, it’s a rare chance to compete in front of a home crowd.

“This will be the first Pacific Games the Solomon Islands has hosted, so it will be a bit of history for the country,” the 40-year-old told AFP.

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Gay Games Hong Kong 2023 closed on Saturday after an nine-day run of sporting competitions and cultural events, which saw athletes from 41 countries and territories competing. The event was hailed as “the best Gay Games ever,” and represented “a small step towards LGBTQ+ inclusion,” organisers said during the closing ceremony.

The event, which saw over 600 competitions held between November 3 and 11, marked the first time ever the Gay Games had been hosted by a city in Asia. Joanie Evans, co-president of the Federation of Gay Games, hailed the Hong Kong’s Gay Games as setting the “benchmark to any games moving forward.”

Lisa Lam, co-chair of Gay Games Hong Kong, said the games represented “a small step towards LGBTQ inclusion, and this journey absolutely does not end here.” Lam thanked the organising team and all participants for making the event happen, and encouraged them to take “the feeling of inclusion” with them, as Hong Kong handed the flag of the Gay Games to Valencia, Spain – the next city to host the Gay Games in 2026.

The Hong Kong event was overshadowed by criticism from anti-LGBTQ lawmakers and groups who claimed the games were a “national security threat” and sought to bar it from going ahead. Lam told HKFP after the closing ceremony on Saturday that she hoped the event could “show people what inclusivity really looks like in action.”

Whilst same-sex sexual activity was legalised in 1991, Hong Kong has no laws to protect the LGBTQ community from discrimination in employment, the provision of goods and services, or from hate speech. Equal marriage remains illegal, although a 2023 survey showed that 60 per cent of Hongkongers support it. Despite repeated government appeals, courts have granted those who married – or who entered civil partnerships – abroad some recognition in terms of tax, spousal visas and public housing.

See also: What is Hong Kong’s Gay Games and why has it seen so much controversy?

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The 11th Gay Games – and the first-ever in Asia – has officially kicked off in Hong Kong, as top government adviser Regina Ip spoke at the opening ceremony despite criticism from anti-gay groups and lawmakers.

The hosting of the Gay Games Hong Kong was strong testimony to the city’s diversity, inclusion and unity, Executive Council convener Ip said during a speech at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium on Saturday. Representatives from more than 40 countries and regions were gathered to mark the opening of the international multi-sport and cultural event.

The organisers “really have come a long way” since submitting a bid to organise the Gay Games in the city in late 2016, Ip said, adding it was a “bold attempt to put Hong Kong in the forefront of the world’s most liberal and open cities.”

“History is being created today… we are proud to be the first Asian city to co-host Gay Games 23 along with Guadalajara of Mexico,” the New People’s Party chairperson told a crowd waving national, regional and rainbow flags.

Opposition to Hong Kong’s Gay Games from anti-LGBTQ groups and legislators grew in the days leading up to Saturday’s opening ceremony, with some calling the event a national security threat. Ip, who rejected claims that the Gay Games was illegal, also came under fire as some groups called for her resignation from the Executive Council.

Citing judgements handed down over the past decade, Ip said on Saturday that local courts consistently upheld the rights of the LGBTQ community to marriage, privacy, dependent visas, civil service benefits, eligibility to public housing and parenthood. Equal opportunity and non-discrimination were highly treasured by the Hong Kong government and Hong Kong people. she said.

“Thumbs up for our independent courts,” she said.

Ip previously said she supported the Gay Games because she was “anti-discrimination.” But she has also said that neither she nor her party, New People’s Party, have ever advocated for the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Hong Kong.

See also: Explainer: What is Hong Kong’s Gay Games and why has it seen so much controversy?

The audience cheered and applauded throughout Ip’s speech. “Thank you Ip Lau!” Some people chanted, calling her by her Chinese name.

Saturday’s opening ceremony began with the march-in of representative teams. Athletes from San Francisco, where the first Gay Games was founded by Olympian Tom Waddell in 1982, were the first to enter the stadium in Wan Chai, provided by the Hong Kong government as a competition venue.

Other participating countries and cities included Australia, Chinese Taipei, Denmark, Japan, the UK, and the US. Mainland China, where the LGBTQ community faces increasing censorship and crackdown, also saw athletes take part in the event.

Whilst same-sex sexual activity was legalised in 1991, Hong Kong has no laws to protect the LGBTQ community from discrimination in employment, the provision of goods and services, or from hate speech. Same-sex marriage remains illegal, although a 2023 survey showed that 60 per cent of Hongkongers support it. Despite repeated government appeals, courts have granted those who married – or who entered civil partnerships – abroad some recognition in terms of tax, spousal visas and public housing.

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Hong Kong’s Gay Games “have not been a political organisation, nor carried any political objectives,” an organiser has said, amid anti-LGBTQ criticism of same-sex marriage from some lawmakers.

Lisa Lam, co-chair of the inclusive sporting event – which runs from Friday to November 11 – said on Commercial Radio on Friday morning that the games’ sole purpose has been to make a “sporting, arts, and cultural event” which promotes “diversity and solidarity.”

“We have not been a political organisation… we wished to show the world the vibrant, energetic side of Hong Kong, and the feeling of diversity and solidarity,” Lam said in Cantonese.

Her remarks came after a group of self-proclaimed “patriotic citizens” filed a petition against the games at the legislature on Wednesday, as a lawmaker claimed that hosting the event amounted to “soft resistance” and a threat to national security.

“Organising the Gay Games is inviting trouble and threatening national security,” a statement from the petitioners read.

Junius Ho, a prominent anti-LGBTQ lawmaker, received the petition saying that the games and the agenda of pushing for same-sex marriage in Hong Kong were a “sugar-coated poison.”

“The agenda [of promoting same-sex marriage] contravenes our current constitution, our current laws and our national security law,” he said in Cantonese on Wednesday.

Lam on Friday did not directly respond to Ho’s claims.

When asked if the Hong Kong Gay Games was a platform for same-sex equality, Lam said that they had consistently urged people not to “apply labels.” She did not elaborate.

When asked if it is correct to say the games were not a tool for advocating the legislation of same-sex marriage, she said “this has never been our agenda.”

She also said that the games would not host any sessions that address the issue of same-sex marriage in the city.

Whilst same-sex sexual activity was legalised in 1991, Hong Kong has no laws to protect the LGBTQ community from discrimination in employment, the provision of goods and services, or from hate speech. Equal marriage remains illegal, although a 2023 survey showed that 60 per cent of Hongkongers support it. Despite repeated government appeals, courts have granted those who married – or who entered civil partnerships – abroad some recognition in terms of tax, spousal visas and public housing.

‘Shaking core values’

Lawmakers from the city’s largest pro-Beijing party have also expressed concerns over the “impact” that the games would bring to “traditional family values.”

Holden Chow and Chan Hok-fung, both vice-chair of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), held a press conference outside government headquarters on Friday, alongside three DAB candidates set to run in the newly-restricted District Council race in December.

Chow claimed that Hong Kong abides by the marriage of husband and wife – a man and a woman – and that families composed of heterosexual spouses have been a core family value. He claimed that a string of recent legal cases ruling in favour of the rights of same-sex couples amounted to a “recognition” of same-sex marriage, which would affect traditional family values.

“While the DAB respects different sexual orientations and supports the elimination of discrimination, we staunchly oppose the legalisation of same-sex marriage,” he said in Cantonese. “The DAB pledges to uphold traditional marriage between a man and a woman, as well as the core values of traditional families.”

He added that the Gay Games was a controversial event that triggered anxiety from parents, schools and religious groups. It is “regrettable” that the event would be held and it will “shake the core values” of the city, he added, without giving evidence.

HKFP asked whether he had the same concern over the Court of Final Appeal’s ruling in September that requires the government to establish an alternative legal framework to recognise same-sex partnerships within two years. In response, he said he had expressed “grave concern” over the ruling and was “quite disappointed.”

“When [the government] needs to formulate policy to sort of recognise any kind of same-sex couple relationship, they need to strike a balance with how to protect traditional family values,” he said.

Embattled games

Despite criticism from lawmakers, top government advisor Regina Ip has denied Junius Ho’s claims that Hong Kong’s Gay Games are a threat to national security. Ip will be an officiating guest on Saturday, when the games formally open.

See also: Explainer: What is Hong Kong’s Gay Games and why has it seen so much controversy?

Around 2,000 athletes are expected to participate in the nine-day long Gay Games – the first to be held in an Asian city – according to the organisers.

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The Hangzhou Asian Para Games came to a close on Saturday evening, with team Hong Kong ranking 10th in the medal table with 47 medals in total: eight gold, 15 silver, and 24 bronze.

Chief Executive John Lee on Saturday congratulated the city’s athletes “most heartening.” In a statement released on Saturday afternoon, he said: “Breakthroughs were achieved in swimming including breaking several Asian Para Games records and winning all three medals in the same event. Their achievements are most heartening.”

Swimmer Chan Yiu-lam had an exceptional games, winning two golds for 100 metre butterfly S14 and 100 metre backstroke S14, and a silver in the 100 metre breaststroke SB14 event.

Hong Kong star badminton player Chu Man-kai snatched gold in the men’s SH6 singles event on Friday, adding to the gold medal he won in the 2018 Asian Para Games.

Hong Kong’s Boccia Team has consistently excelled at the Asian Para Games. At the 2018 event in Indonesia, the team won one gold, one silver and two bronze medals. This year, they beat that tally to win one gold, two silver and three bronze medals.

Yeung Hiu-lam won a gold in the boccia women’s individual BC2 event on Wednesday, while Ho Yuen-kei and Tse Tak-wah won a silver in the boccia mixed BC3 pairs event on Thursday.

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By Rod Parkes

Back in colonial days, the accepted wisdom was that Hong Kong did not produce world-class sportspeople. While this belief was a little unfair to those who brought home occasional medals from the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games in disciplines as diverse as lawn bowls, taekwondo and ten-pin bowling, these were isolated successes and the territory lacked strength in depth.

Apart from football (older fans will remember the glory days of Derek Currie), sport was largely an amateur affair. Parents typically discouraged their children from pursuing a sporting career, steering them instead to choices perceived as more lucrative, such as medicine and law.

This picture began to change with Lee Lai-shan’s first Olympic medal for the territory in 1996. Then after Hong Kong’s return to China, the SAR gained one further medal at each of the 2004 and 2012 games – but it was the breakthrough performance at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021) that was a real game-changer. Having never won more than one medal at any previous Olympiad, the territory came away with six, including one gold.

This remarkable success story for the SAR was followed by an even more impressive performance at the just concluded 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou (held in 2023), which yielded a record 53 medals, as well as breaking several local and Asian records. These results have been widely acclaimed, but critics are already questioning whether this level of achievement can be sustained. So how does Hong Kong really stack up against the competition?

In the official results table, which is traditionally ranked in order of gold medals won, Hong Kong stood in 49^th place out of the 206 competing territories, 93 of which won medals, in Tokyo. In Hangzhou, it finished 12^th out of 45 – both creditable top quartile finishes. But there are other ways of looking at the results.

For a start, the focus on gold medals can give an unjust impression of total performance. In Tokyo, Ukraine earned a commendable 19 medals overall, making it 16^th by total medal count, but, with just one gold, only 44^th in the official medals table – not too far above the three territories which earned a solitary gold but no other medals: Bermuda, Puerto Rico and Morocco in 63^rd place. In Hangzhou, Kazakhstan ranked 5^th in total medals, but only 10^th in golds. By this measure, Hong Kong’s ranking improved from 49^th to 40^th in Tokyo, and 12^th to 10^th in Hangzhou.

As expected, the medals table is invariably dominated by the most populous countries: the USA in Tokyo, and China at both events, with Japan (host nation in 2021) coming in behind them. South Korea was the next ranked Asian country, while India atoned for its lacklustre Olympic showing with a respectable performance in Hangzhou, where the Games featured more of the sports in which it excels, such as cricket which gave it two golds. And Uzbekistan emerged as a new sporting powerhouse, coming in just behind the leaders with a strong 5^th or 6^th place finish in golds and total medals respectively across a range of sports.

Compared with these giants, Hong Kong is a minnow. They have the advantage of much larger populations to pick from – China alone has 188 times as many people as the SAR. Adjust the results to take account of population, however, and things look startlingly different, with several “little big winners” coming into play. The diminutive republic of San Marino, with fewer than 35,000 inhabitants, topped the table in Tokyo, with its tiny team of five entrants winning three medals – a feat even more remarkable considering the enclave had never previously won a medal. Two small island territories, Bermuda (population 65,000) and Grenada (113,000) took the next two places. On this metric, Hong Kong ranked significantly higher at 30^th, while China dropped to 77^th and the USA to 60^th.

On a per capita basis in Hangzhou, Bahrain would have raced to victory, with 10 of its 12 golds coming in athletics. Second-placed Macau – which did not even compete in Tokyo – captured six medals, all in Wushu. Hong Kong came in third, with its 53 medals spanning a more diverse range of events across almost all the 40 disciplines featured. Hong Kong’s traditional strengths in swimming, cycling, fencing – spearheaded by Edgar Cheung Ka-long – and rugby sevens were on full display, but successes also came in less expected disciplines like rowing, equestrianism, golf, triathlon, squash, and even bridge.

Of course, not all small territories did well – Bhutan, usually expert in archery, was off the mark this time, joining two other minuscule countries and war-torn Yemen which also struck out. Not that a large population is any guarantee of sporting success – the world’s second (now first) most populous nation, India, sat at the foot of the table on a medals per capita basis in Tokyo, with fourth most populous Indonesia only two places above it at 91^st.

Nor is a large team an advantage in absolute terms, but as a percentage of population it appears to help – several countries with a sizable squad relative to their populations, including San Marino, Grenada and New Zealand, did well in Tokyo on a per capita basis. Macau’s per capita success in Hangzhou may owe something to the fact that one Macau citizen in every 3,709 was in its team. Hong Kong and Bahrain also ranked high on this metric, with one in 10,898 and 11,028 respectively. At the opposite end of the scale, only one in every three million Syrians and one in two million Indians was in their country’s delegations.

Beyond population, cultural differences play a part in success – sports-mad countries like Australia and New Zealand regularly punch above their weight. Conversely, in some places, religious and cultural factors limit the development of sporting potential, particularly among women. Afghanistan’s Taliban regime halves the country’s chances by fielding only men, and while Saudi Arabia has plenty of sand, don’t expect to see a Saudi women’s beach volleyball team in bikinis any time soon! This is not a concern in Hong Kong, with four women among its five medal winners in Tokyo – ever-improving swimmer Siobhan Haughey won two, making up the total of six, and topped this with six medals in Hangzhou.

A country’s sporting culture also helps determine the sports in which it can compete successfully. Where a country’s national sport is not on the Games roster, this tends to handicap its chances. Some sports come and go from the Games; and Grace Lau’s wins for Hong Kong in karate at both Tokyo and Hangzhou will not be repeated in Paris 2024, when the sport will not be featured. Indeed, some countries’ national sports, such as camel racing in the UAE, or the rough-and-tumble variant of polo played with a goat carcass in Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan, are unlikely ever to feature at an Olympiad. With no specific national sport, Hong Kong’s effort was spread across 14 different sports in Tokyo and more than 30 in Hangzhou.

How successful were Hong Kong’s athletes individually? One more way of looking at the results is the proportion of each country’s athletes who succeed in winning a medal. In Tokyo, San Marino (0.6 medals per athlete) and Bermuda (0.5) were clear winners, with at least half their teams of five and two respectively taking a medal home. Hong Kong gained 0.143 medals per athlete, placing it equal with three other countries in 21^st place. In Hangzhou, China achieved the remarkable feat for a large country of winning more than 0.432 medals per team member, while Hong Kong was in mid-table at 0.077.

Efforts have been made to analyse Olympic results by the Gross Domestic Product of competing territories, but correlation is difficult because of varying income equality and the differing natural advantages enjoyed by some countries. Nevertheless, a country’s relative wealth certainly has an impact on its sporting success. Football is the most popular game in the world because all it requires is a ball, a patch of waste ground, and some improvised goal markers. Basketball is another favourite in poorer countries, with only a ball and two hoops needed.

By contrast, other sports require considerably more expensive equipment, such as boats and sailboards, horses, or other facilities. Countries prosperous enough to afford plentiful public swimming pools, tennis courts and golf courses have a head start in developing sporting talent. It is unlikely that Sarah Lee would have become the first local competitor to win medals in two different Olympiads – London 2012 and (nail-bitingly late) in Tokyo if Hong Kong had not invested in a velodrome. And much of the SAR’s success in recent years has been shepherded by the Hong Kong Sports Institute, founded as the Jubilee Sports Centre in 1982. Many of Hong Kong’s champions have emerged from the Institute, which provides training and financial support to promising young athletes in selected sports.

Meanwhile poverty-stricken Bangladesh is the most populous nation never to have won an Olympic medal. It won only two in Hangzhou, despite its massive 170 million population. In 2008, Bangladesh’s Olympic Association head Wali Ullah attributed the country’s poor results to its weak economy and widespread corruption. Pakistan, with three medals – one per 83 million of its population – fared only slightly better. At the other end of the scale, Macau brought home a remarkable one medal per 79,000 people.

From whatever perspective one views it, Hong Kong’s sporting performance has advanced by leaps and bounds in recent decades, yielding excellent results in Tokyo and Hangzhou. Questions about the scale and allocation of government subsidisation are certainly legitimate – some well-funded athletes were left trailing in Hangzhou – but ultimately, winning depends on the talent and determination of the contestants. As Hong Kong’s sporting heroes inspire a new generation of dedicated youngsters to take up sport, future success will surely follow.

Rod Parkes has lived and worked in Hong Kong since 1975. His “portfolio career” has spanned IT, HR, quality management, teaching, brand strategy, and three decades of writing and editing for clients ranging from start-ups to major multinationals, with occasional forays into journalism on the side. He loves Hong Kong, for all its faults.

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A Hong Kong man who displayed a British colonial flag during a FIFA World Cup qualification match was taken aside by police.

Around 15 minutes before the match, a man wearing a hat and a white shirt held up Hong Kong’s colonial-era flag in the Hong Kong Stadium’s spectator stand. He was soon approached by at least two plainclothes police officers and led away, Yahoo News reported.

Police then searched the man’s bag, according to photos by online media outlet The Collective.

In response to HKFP, the police said in a statement that they identified a 21-year-old man who “displayed a flag” when police were maintaining order at the stadium.

“Our staff therefore approached the man for further investigation. No one was arrested in the incident,” a police spokesperson told HKFP in Cantonese.

Police did not reply as to why the man was taken away and whether he returned to the spectator stand afterwards.

The colonial flag, emblazoned with the Union Jack and a dragon and lion motif, was adopted by the colonial government as Hong Kong’s flag from 1959 to 1997 before the city was returned to China.

The flag was waved occasionally at assemblies and marches during the 2019 protests and unrest. During the July 1 storming of the Legislative Council building in 2019, some protestors hung the flag on the podium after breaking into the building.

Tam Yiu-chung, a pro-Beijing politician who is a former member of the Standing Committee of National People’s Congress, told media outlets in May 2020 – ahead of the national security law’s enactment – that he believed waving the colonial flag during marches would violate the legislation.

In November last year, a citizen journalist who waved the colonial flag while the Chinese national anthem was being played was sentenced to three-months’ jail for insulting the anthem. The incident, during which people were gathered at a mall to watch an Olympics medal ceremony, marked the first conviction under the National Anthem Ordinance which came into effect in 2020.

National anthem booed

Hong Kong matches have sometimes become platforms for political demonstrations in recent years.

Hong Kong football fans were heard booing China’s national anthem in September last year at Hong Kong Stadium, when the city saw its first match that was open to spectators after the government lifted Covid-19 restrictions.

A team of six policemen patrolled the stadium, with one holding up a video camera recording the scene as some fans booed “March of the Volunteers” for about 10 seconds before the Hong Kong team took on Myanmar, AFP reported.

During two Asian qualifiers for the World Cup in November 2019, when Hong Kong played against Bahrain and Cambodia, spectators also booed the national anthem. FIFA later fined the Hong Kong Football Association 30,000 Swiss francs (HK$30,500).

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