Hong Kong athletes pulled off a stellar performance in 2024 with their biggest Olympic gold medal haul yet, analysts said as they highlighted the smooth opening of the Kai Tak Sports Park as the top priority for the sector in the coming year.
But some misses, such as football star Lionel Messi’s failure to play in an exhibition match in February, prompted several observers to urge authorities to step up efforts in scrutinising funding requests from event organisers.
“In terms of elite sports, I think this year was a bumper harvest – we have very good results in the Olympics and the Paralympics Games,” said Lobo Louie Hung-tak, associate head of the Education University of Hong Kong’s health and physical education department.
Hong Kong athletes delivered the city’s best sporting performances in recent years, with foilist Cheung Ka-long and epeeist Vivian Kong Man-wai each winning gold at the Paris Olympics, while swimmer Siobhan Haughey came away with two bronze medals.
Paralympic athletes also came home with their best results since the 2012 London Games with eight medals including three golds.
Lawmaker Vincent Cheng Wing-shun highlighted that athletes in events that were not supported by the government’s elite sports programme, such as basketball and football, had also achieved good results.