Cross Harbour Race: organisers eye up to 10,000 swimmers for future races after successful revival of pandemic-hit event
- Swimming chief Ronnie Wong satisfied with Covid-19 precautions as 1,200 swimmers cross the harbour for the first time after a two-year break
- Hong Kong swimmer Keith Sin wins the men’s main event in 13:44 with Nip Tsz-yin taking the women’s title in 14:56
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Hong Kong’s Cross Harbour swim makes triumphant return amid Covid-19 restrictions
Hong Kong swimming chief Ronnie Wong Man-chiu said he was satisfied with the Covid-19 safety measures implemented for Sunday’s revived Cross Harbour Race and is hoping up to 10,000 swimmers can take part in future events.
Around 1,200 swimmers – down from 4,000 in the last race – splashed their way from Wan Chai to Tsim Sha Tsui after a strict screening process that included being fully vaccinated and providing a negative Covid-19 test at least 48 hours before race day.
“I think every thing went very well, we are very satisfied,” said Wong, president of the Hong Kong, China Swimming Association. “Only four people got sick, compared to around 15-20 before, with minor colds and they are all fine. The water was a bit colder than in previous years because the race is normally in October and this year we are having it in December.
“In general, we are very satisfied with the whole arrangement. We had to cut down the number of swimmers to 1,200 because of the pandemic but I’m hoping we can go back to normal next year and my main objective is to one day see 8,000 to 10,000 swimmers take part.”
This is the first Cross Harbour Race since 2018, with the 2019 event cancelled because of anti-government protests and last year’s race hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. It is also the second mass-participation sporting event in Hong Kong this year after October’s Hong Kong marathon, which was reduced to 18,500 runners from its usual 70,000.