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Paul McNamara

Hong Kong Olympic chief Timothy Fok Tsun-ting has said the city should be capable of replicating Singapore’s recent overnight development of a world-class swimming centre.
Fok also called for an upgrade of Hong Kong’s leading tennis hub at Victoria Park.
In both cases, he underlined the need for sustainable and enduring facilities as Hong Kong tries to position itself as a magnet for international sport.
In November, the city will jointly host the National Games alongside Guangdong and Macau, having staged a number of high-profile football matches this summer.
Fok said a successful cross-border Games could inch the region closer to the “ultimate prize” of welcoming an Olympic Games, something “everybody is chasing”.
Singapore recently hosted the World Aquatics Championships, with swimming events housed in a 4,800-seat structure that was built in around six months.
“Like Singapore, we’re small and don’t have many facilities, but they managed it and we should be capable of doing something similar,” said Fok, who is the long-standing president of the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF&OC).
Last week, the 79-year-old attended the first event at a new 60,000-capacity stadium in Guangzhou’s Nansha District. Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the venue – along with basketball and aquatics venues in the same Greater Bay Area Sports Centre – took just two years to build.
In April, Hong Kong’s four-time Olympic medallist Siobhan Haughey told the Post her greatest wish was for a new top-level swimming arena in her home city.

“Technology is changing; you don’t need complex structures,” Fok, speaking to the Post in his office at the SF&OC’s Olympic House headquarters, said. “Governing bodies don’t want you to build expensive facilities for one-off Games. The most important thing is creating a legacy; not having two weeks of competition, then no plan.
“With swimming, we could have something that is eventually for everybody.
“Our tennis facilities aren’t up to scratch … we spend a lot of time putting up things [for ATP and WTA events at Victoria Park], but when tournaments are finished, we take them away.
“We’re having some success in tennis, and it’s a Hong Kong sport. We don’t need extravagant new facilities, but they need to be good enough to regularly stage international competitions.”
Fok said the idea of creating an elite Victoria Park tennis and swimming centre had not been broached. He pointed out, nonetheless, that only around 25 per cent of Hong Kong land was built up.
“There’s space that can be used and we want facilities for every sport,” Fok added. “We have a cycling velodrome and the new [Kai Tak] stadium, but we need all the other things. I’d like each district to adopt a sport.

“The government is seeing the success of our athletes and becoming more generous, flexible and cooperative. We’re having more major events and putting Hong Kong on the map, and we can do more.”
In December next year, Hong Kong will host the general assembly of the Association of National Olympic Committees.
Fok said the influx of national sports bosses, alongside International Olympic Committee bigwigs, would “provide an opportunity to show what is happening in Hong Kong sport”.
“They hear about it, but it’s very different to see it,” Fok said. “There are many ways to expose Hong Kong as a wonderful place for sports exchanges … and it could be the beginning of us getting more international events.”


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Hong Kong Olympic chief calls for world-class swimming and tennis facilities

Victoria Park is Hong Kong’s leading tennis facility. Photo: Dickson Lee

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Coleman Wong is flying the flag for Hong Kong tennis with his exploits at the US Open. Photo: Xinhua

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Sport

Hong Kong

Timothy Fok says city can follow Singapore’s example by creating elite swimming centre, acknowledges staging Olympics would be ‘ultimate prize’


Timothy Fok says city can follow Singapore’s example by creating elite swimming centre, acknowledges staging Olympics would be ‘ultimate prize’.


2025 National Games

Siobhan Haughey

Hong Kong Olympic chief calls for world-class swimming and tennis facilities

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Timothy Fok says city can follow Singapore’s example by creating elite swimming centre, acknowledges staging Olympics would be ‘ultimate prize’

Timothy Fok says city can follow Singapore’s example by creating elite swimming centre, acknowledges staging Olympics would be ‘ultimate prize’