LCQ13: Positioning and role of Kai Tak Sports Park in sports development

     Following is a question by the Hon Adrian Ho and a written reply by the Acting Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Raistlin Lau, in the Legislative Council today (June 12):
 
Question:
 
     Occupying an area of about 28 hectares and being the largest sports infrastructure project in Hong Kong's history, the Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP) will open in the first half of next year. Some competition events of the 15th National Games (NG) will be held in the KTSP. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) given that while Hong Kong will organise eight competition events of the NG (including Basketball (men U22), Cycling Track, Fencing, Golf, Handball (men), Rugby Sevens, Triathlon and Beach Volleyball) and one mass participation event (i.e. Bowling), the events are scheduled to be held at different venues, of the reasons for the relevant arrangement (including whether it is based on the consideration on the capacity of the KTSP in organising mega events); the plans in future to showcase the KTSP's world-class facilities and operation quality, thereby enabling it to contribute to the efforts in making Hong Kong a centre for major sports events;
 
(2) as it is reported that the competition events of the NG to be organised in Hong Kong will be shared among the KTSP and venues such as the Hong Kong Coliseum, the Hong Kong Velodrome and the Fanling Golf Course, and only the Rugby Sevens competition will be held at the KTSP's Main Stadium, giving an impression of a limited role played by the Main Stadium in the NG, whether the authorities have set a target on organising other events at the Main Stadium, such as attracting more competitions comparable in scale with the Hong Kong Sevens to be held at the KTSP's Main Stadium, so as to proactively develop the KTSP into an "iconic foothold" for hosting local and international major sports events; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
 
(3) as there are views that with the commissioning of the KTSP in future, it may also serve as a performance venue for concerts of local artistes and international superstars, variety shows, etc, but such use may give an impression that the KTSP has deviated from its original purpose of development, how the authorities strike a balance among different development directions, thus allowing the KTSP to develop into a landmark for major sports events in Hong Kong, and at the same time promoting the development of the sports, performing arts and cultural industries in Hong Kong?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     The Government is committed to promoting sports development in Hong Kong by promoting sports in the community, supporting elite sports, developing Hong Kong into a centre for major international sports events, enhancing professionalism and developing sports as an industry. This include promoting sports at community level, increasing and enhancing sports and recreation facilities, and encouraging collaboration among communities in fostering a strong sporting culture; strengthening the support to elite athletes as well as attracting major international sports events to be held in Hong Kong. At the same time, we endeavour to promote sports development in Hong Kong through enhanced professionalism in the sports sector and the development of sports as an industry.
      
     Being the largest sports infrastructure project in Hong Kong's history, the Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP) is crucial to the Government's implementation of the relevant sports policies. The KTSP will provide modern and multi-purpose sports and recreation facilities upon completion, including a 50 000-seat Main Stadium, a 10 000-seat Indoor Sports Centre, a 5 000-seat Public Sports Ground and about 14-hectare landscaped open space and other ancillary facilities. According to the current construction progress, we expect that the major facilities of the KTSP will be completed by end of 2024 and the KTSP will be open in the first half of 2025.

     The consolidated reply to the questions raised by the Hon Adrian Ho is as follows:
 
(1) The 15th National Games (NG) will be unprecedentedly co-hosted in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao from November 9 to 21, 2025. Hong Kong will organise eight competition events, namely Basketball (men U22), Cycling Track, Fencing, Golf, Handball (men), Rugby Sevens, Triathlon and Beach Volleyball. Hong Kong citizens, people living in the Greater Bay Area and even sports lovers from all parts of the Mainland can visit the competition venues in Hong Kong to watch the high-level matches and cheer for the athletes.
 
     When organising major multi-sport events, host cities or regions would generally make full use of suitable existing venues and facilities. As the 15th NG will be held over a period of 13 days only, having carefully considered factors such as the expected number of competition days of the eight events (a number of events such as Basketball (men U22), Fencing, Handball (men) and Beach Volleyball are expected to take more than a week), venues that are currently or soon-to-be available in Hong Kong, the time required for setting up as well as the transportation arrangements and crowd management, we are planning to organise a total of three competition events in the KTSP, namely Fencing, Handball (men) and Rugby Sevens. Basketball (men U22), Cycling Track and Golf will take place at the Hong Kong Coliseum, the Hong Kong Velodrome and the Fanling Golf Course respectively. Triathlon will be held at the Central Harbourfront while Beach Volleyball will be organised in the Victoria Park. The above arrangements not only make effective use of the venues and facilities in Hong Kong, but also showcase to the visiting spectators or audience on television the outlook and characteristics of various districts of Hong Kong.

(2) The KTSP adopts a "Design, Build and Operate" model, with Kai Tak Sports Park Limited (KTSPL) being the Contracted Party responsible for the design, construction and future operation of the Sports Park. 

     In accordance with its operational requirements, KTSPL has to achieve key performance indicators (KPIs) on the hosting of sports events at the major facilities during the operation period. If it fails to achieve the KPIs, the Government can require the Contracted Party to make payment according to the contractual requirements. The KPIs on sports events are listed as follows:
 

 
     On the other hand, KTSPL also undertakes to implement a Sports Events Support Scheme (SESS) to support sports events. Its financial commitment under the SESS is $1.583 billion in total, which is to be disbursed over a period of around 20 years. Commitment under the SESS will be met either by waiving venue hiring charges for sports events held in the Sports Park or by making direct financial contribution to any sports events. The above arrangements will encourage the Contracted Party to proactively promote the KTSP as "the destination" for local and international large-scale sports events.
 
(3) As aforementioned, KTSPL has to comply with the contractual requirements to ensure that its operation can achieve the KPIs, such as ensuring the number of days of hosting sports events in each major facility, the time provided for sports use in each venue and the usage rate of the major facilities, etc, with a view to meeting the objectives of the Government's sports policy.
 
     At the same time, we believe that the facilities of the KTSP will be welcomed by organisers of large-scale events. In particular, the Main Stadium, being equipped with a retractable roof, offering different stage positioning and seating configurations as well as adopting a flexible pitch system design, provides more options for hosting different types of large-scale events such as sports competitions and pop concerts. The outdoor event space adjacent to the Main Stadium also allows the hosting of different kinds of outdoor sports and entertainment events. As for the Indoor Sports Centre, its retractable seating system and flexible configuration of the play field provide another option for hosting various kinds of sports, culture or entertainment events.
      
     Indeed, KTSPL has so far made contact with over 200 local and international sports and non-sports events' promotion bodies, organisations and agencies, amongst which around 50 of them have expressed interest in utilising the facilities at the KTSP and are learning about the leasing arrangements. The Government will establish an inter-departmental working group led by the Chief Secretary for Administration to ensure the successful completion and commissioning of the KTSP. In addition, we will closely monitor the usage of the KTSP after its commissioning to balance the staging of large-scale sports and non-sports events with a view to showcasing Hong Kong as an events capital. We believe that the KTSP will bring about significant synergy to the development of Hong Kong. While promoting sports in the community, supporting elite sports, maintaining Hong Kong as a centre for major international sports events, enhancing professionalism and developing sports as an industry, the KTSP will also drive the development of related industries such as entertainment, performances and tourism.