Hong Kong Cross Harbour Race: almost 2,000 swimmers left disappointed after event for 1,500 people gets 3,400 entries
- Swimming boss acknowledges people will miss out but says demand shows popularity of race
- Organisers hope to return to pre-Covid levels next year if pandemic restrictions in city ease
Almost 2,000 swimmers in Hong Kong will miss out on next month’s Cross Harbour Race after the event attracted more than twice as many entries as there was space available.
Organisers revealed on Wednesday that 3,400 people had applied for the 1,500 places on offer, and said they hoped to be able to return to pre-Covid numbers next year.
While acknowledging the disappointment for most of those involved, Ronnie Wong Man-chiu, president of the city’s Swimming Association, said it proved just how popular the event was.
“We were only allowed [by the government] to run the event with 1,500 swimmers and therefore have to use a ballot to decide the participants which means a lot of people will be disappointed,” he said.
“But it has also proved the harbour race is a very popular event in Hong Kong, and if the pandemic continues to ease we will ask for a higher quota next year.”
There were 3,600 swimmers in the race in 2018, but the following year was cancelled because of the civil unrest that hit the city and then Covid forced another cancellation in 2020.
Government officials had initially wanted to limit the number of participants to 500 this time around, but eventually agreed to keep the same figure as 2021, although swimmers will have to depart in waves on October 23.
