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     Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (March 1) that the Ping Shan Tin Shui Wai Swimming Pool in Yuen Long District has been temporarily closed for cleaning and superchlorination following the discovery of a small amount of vomit in the pool.

     It will be reopened at 7pm today.

     The department appeals to swimmers to be considerate and to keep the swimming pools clean. They are advised not to swim after a full meal and should use the toilet facilities if necessary before swimming. 

The following is issued on behalf of the Major Sports Events Committee:
 
     The Major Sports Events Committee (MSEC) has awarded "M" Mark status to three major international sports events to be held in March this year, namely LIV Golf Hong Kong 2024 (March 8 to 10), 2024 Tissot UCI Track Nations Cup – Hong Kong, China (March 15 to 17) and 2024 World Triathlon Cup – Hong Kong (March 23 and 24).

     The Chairman of the MSEC, Mr Wilfred Ng, said today (March 1) that like all other "M" Mark events, these events will not only showcase Hong Kong's capability to host world-class sports events and promote sports development, but also add colour and vibrancy to Hong Kong, bring in more visitors from abroad and enhance Hong Kong's position as a centre for major international sports events. 
      
     "The 'M' Mark recognition for these events signifies that they meet the Committee's criteria for large-scale international sports events. These competitions are significant not only to the sports sector, but also the entire Hong Kong. I hope that these events will be held successfully and provide an unforgettable experience for all those involved, allowing them to experience the city's charm as an events capital," Mr Ng said.

     The "M" Mark System aims to encourage and help local "national sports associations" and private and non-government organisations to organise more major international sports events and nurture them into sustainable undertakings. Sports events meeting the assessment criteria will be granted "M" Mark status by the MSEC. Funding support will also be provided to some events.
      
     For details of "M" Mark events, please visit www.mevents.org.hk.

     â€‹The Government announced today (March 1) the appointment of Mr Jack Chan Jick-chi as the new Ombudsman for a term of five years commencing April 1, 2024. The appointment is made by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, in accordance with The Ombudsman Ordinance (Cap 397).

     Mr Chan is a seasoned and experienced former senior government official, who had served the Government for nearly 40 years. He served as a directorate officer in various bureaux and departments including the former Civil Service Branch; the former Security Branch; the University Grants Committee; the former Works Branch; the former Environment, Transport and Works Bureau; the Development Bureau; the former Home Affairs Bureau; and the Home Affairs Department. Mr Chan was appointed as the Under Secretary for Home Affairs in the fifth term of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, and had served as the Acting Secretary for Home Affairs from January 24 to June 30, 2022. 

     Mr Lee said, "I am confident that with Mr Chan's excellent leadership, decisiveness and rich experience in public administration, he will lead the Office of The Ombudsman to continue carrying out its statutory functions and ensuring efficiency in the public administration of Hong Kong."

     The term of office of the incumbent Ombudsman, Ms Winnie Chiu, will expire on March 31, 2024. Mr Lee said, "Ms Chiu led the Office of The Ombudsman during her tenure with the mission of enhancing the quality and level of Hong Kong's public administration. I wish Ms Chiu a happy life ahead." 

     An open recruitment exercise was conducted earlier to select the new Ombudsman, and a selection board was appointed to assess the candidates and make recommendation to the Chief Executive. The selection board was chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration, with Mr Chan Kin-por, Mr Frank Chan Fan and the Director of Administration as members.

  

     The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) announced today (March 1) that Robin's Nest Country Park (RNCP) was established the same day. 
 
     RNCP, occupying an area of about 530 hectares at Sha Tau Kok in Northeastern New Territories, is the 25th country park in Hong Kong. The Park lies on a continuum of mountain ridges stretching from the Shenzhen Wutong Mountain Scenic Area to the north and Pat Sin Leng Country Park to the south. Consisting of natural habitats including secondary woodland, shrubland and upland grassland, RNCP is rich in biodiversity with many species of high conservation value, such as red azalea, incense tree, Chinese grassbird and Chinese pipistrelle. 
 
     An AFCD spokesman said, "The undulating mountain ridges and intertwining natural streams at Robin's Nest provide a variety of habitats for wild animals and plants. Robin's Nest is geographically connected to Shenzhen Wutong Mountain, forming a cross-boundary ecological corridor between Hong Kong and Shenzhen. The AFCD, together with the Shenzhen Wutong Mountain Scenic Area Management Authority, has been formulating a work programme, including information exchanges, research and enhancement of the quality of the ecological corridor, to create a larger area of continuous habitats and promote ecological integration of the two places."
 
     The spokesman also pointed out that a mine site in RNCP, once used for galena mining and being one of the largest mining systems in Hong Kong in the 1940s, was a unique cultural attraction.
 
     The AFCD will carry out management measures in RNCP for conservation, recreation and education purposes, and enforce the control under the Country Parks and Special Areas Regulations to conserve the natural environment, scenic landscape and cultural heritage resources, thereby enhancing biodiversity.
 
     The spokesman further said, "The AFCD are constructing recreational facilities such as a hiking trail network, picnic sites and viewing points in RNCP. At present, two hiking trails, namely Robin's Nest Country Trail and Lin Ma Hang Country Trail, are open for use. Their entrances are located respectively at Shan Tsui of Sha Ta Kok and Lin Ma Hang Village. Information boards, directional signs and distance posts, as well as viewing points and interpretation panels, will be installed along the hiking trails to facilitate hiking, nature and cultural heritage appreciation. Revitalisation works of Lin Ma Hang Lead Mine is underway, aiming to turn the site to an open museum showcasing the mining history and bat ecology to members of the public. The works are expected to be completed by end of this year."
 
     The spokesman reminded members of the public to take into account their physical strength, hiking experience and weather situation in planning a hike at RNCP as it is remotely located with a rugged landscape. It is normally a four-to-five-hour's walk along the two Country Trails. Moreover, members of the public are encouraged to go hiking with their friends or family members, and help conserve the countryside by practising proper hiking etiquette, for example by bringing along reusable water bottles and towels, and "Take Your Litter Home".
 
     Information about RNCP is available on the AFCD website (www.afcd.gov.hk) or the Enjoy Hiking website (www.hiking.gov.hk).

                  

     The Hong Kong Film Archive (HKFA) of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department will present a screening programme entitled "Of Fists and Swords – Kaleidoscope of Hong Kong Martial Arts Films" from March 27 to June 22, screening 23 martial arts films at the Grand Theatre of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and the Cinema of the HKFA to showcase how Hong Kong martial arts films with unique aesthetics are created from the rich foundations of Chinese culture and martial arts, with elements of pop culture blended in. This screening programme is one of the programmes of the Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival 2024.
 
     The opening film "Zu: Warriors from the Magic Mountain" (1983) (4K Digitally Restored Version) is an adaptation of the martial arts novel "Legend of the Swordsmen of the Mountains of Shu". Director Tsui Hark hired Hollywood special effects experts who had worked on "Star Wars" (1977), and used numerous practical and special optical effects to build an oriental fantasy world combining Chinese myths, wuxia and history.　
 
     In addition to the opening and closing films, the screening programme is divided into six sections. The first section, "Tales of Chivalry", consists of five imaginative period wuxia films including "The Valiant Ones" (1975) (4K Digitally Restored Version) which was directed by King Hu with its production and costume designs based on serious and meticulous historical research; "The Enigmatic Case" (1980), the film debut of director Johnnie To; a film blending together elements of swordplay, suspense, detective work and science fiction directed by Tsui, "The Butterfly Murders" (1979) (Restored Version); and "The Sword" (1980) with Tony Ching as the film's martial arts choreographer, employing a lot of "wire" techniques; and "Seven Swords" (2005) (4K Restored Version), directed by Tsui with Lau Kar-leung as the action director.
 
     There are four kung fu films in the second section "Fists of Fury". "The Way of the Dragon" (1972) (4K Restored Version) is the only film scripted, directed and acted by Bruce Lee, and both "Shaolin Martial Arts" (1974) and "Martial Club" (1981) give mesmerising displays of kung fu of the southern schools and the northern and southern fist-fight martial arts respectively. The last one is "The Shaolin Temple" (1982) (4K Restored Version), in which internationally acclaimed martial arts star Jet Li made his screen debut.
 
     In the third section "Yin Over Yang", there will be two classics acted by two iconic kung fu film actresses that feature the glamour of the action heroines. The films are "My Young Auntie" (1981), which earned actress Kara Wai the Best Actress Award at the 1st Hong Kong Film Awards, and "Yes, Madam!" (1985) (Restored Version), which established Michelle Yeoh's image as an action star.
 
     The four genre-crossing action films featured in the fourth section "Entertaining Remixes" are action hero Jackie Chan's comedy kung fu classic "Drunken Master" (1978); "The Prodigal Son" (1981), for which Sammo Hung was the director, a scriptwriter, a martial arts instructor and an actor; "Police Story" (1985) (4K Restored Version), a police drama and action film in which Jackie Chan was the director, writer, lead actor as well as the team leader for martial arts choreography; and "Black Mask" (1996) (Restored Version), a fantasy action film in comic style.
 
     The fifth section "Legends Reimagined" will present four films revolving around real-life martial arts grandmasters, including "Once Upon a Time in China" (1991), which clinched four wins at the 11th Hong Kong Film Awards, and "Ip Man" (2008), which was based on the life of Wing Chun grandmaster. In "Tai Chi Zero" (2012) and "Tai Chi Hero" (2012), the story of the founder of Yang-style Tai Chi Yang Lu-chan is portrayed in a visual style inspired by video games. To facilitate the audience's understanding of the complete plots of the films, "Tai Chi Zero" and "Tai Chi Hero" will be screened consecutively.
 
     Directed by Alex Law and Ann Hui respectively and featured under the sixth section "Behind-the-Scenes Stories", "Painted Faces" (1988) (Restored Version) and "Ah Kam" (1996) focus on the careers of martial arts actors, stunt performers and martial arts choreographers that are rarely portrayed in films. They offer audiences glimpses of the stories behind the limelight, paying tribute to the contribution of lesser-known people in martial arts filmmaking.
 
     Directed by Wong Kar-wai, the closing film "The Grandmaster" (2013) is about the stories between Ip Man and his fellow martial artists in the competitive world of martial arts. An epitome of wenyi films wrapped in martial arts, the film won 12 awards including the Best Film Award and Best Director Award at the 33rd Hong Kong Film Awards.
 
     Various screenings will be accompanied by post-screening talks, where directors Daniel Lee, Wilson Yip, Joe Cheung and Lawrence Lau; martial arts choreographers Lau Kar-wing and Ku Huen-chiu; actors Frankie Chan, Lau Kong and Robert Mak; film editors Gogo Wong and Chu Kar-ning; screenwriters Sze Yeung-ping and Bryan Chang; kung fu culture researcher Pang Chi-ming; and film researchers Shu Kei, Sam Ho, Thomas Shin, Eric Tsang, Matthew Cheng, Joyce Yang and Cheng Chuen-wai will discuss with audiences about the extraordinary creativity and talent both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. For programme details, please call 2739 2139 or visit the website of the HKFA: www.filmarchive.gov.hk/en/web/hkfa/2024/martial/pe-event-2024-martial.html.
 
     Tickets priced at $45 are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288.