Blue Berets find fun building team spirit and raising cash

The good guys always win, as we all know, and they triumphed especially well this week in raising money for Operation Santa Claus.

The Police Tactical Unit raised thousands of dollars during its annual team-building event for the campaign, co-organised by the South China Morning Post and RTHK. Nine teams of 20 officers gathered at the grounds of the PTU's headquarters in Fanling to go head-to-head in several demanding but fun competitions.

Chief Inspector Douglas Ross, who is on a four-month PTU training course, co-ordinated the event, which had 'developed over time'. 'Before, I think it was just people going around and asking for donations,' he said. 'But they said: 'Can't we make it more interesting?'

'It's different. It's a way to assess the effectiveness of past team-building events. It's a bit of fun and we're also giving to charity.'

First up was the 'Unimog pull', where 10 teammates dragged an armoured vehicle about 100 metres across the drill square.

Next was a rowing-machine race, followed by an event called the 'Redman rumble', a simulated combat. Officers dressed in protective suits and, using foam batons, tried to burst balloons taped to their opponents.