The Hong Kong running event "Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022" was originally scheduled to be held on November 20, but the Hong Kong Athletics Association suddenly announced the cancellation of the competition on September 16, pointing to the government's delay in approving the event.
Yang Runxiong, director of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau, was surprised by Mr. Tian's decision and said that he would send someone to assist him. Sports Commissioner Yang Deqiang pointed out that Mr. Tian refused to postpone until February next year even though he knew there was a vacancy in Victoria Park, and asked why the previous session used two Months are enough to schedule a match but not this year.
The tug-of-war between President Tian and the government began a few months ago. The two sides negotiated the number of participants in the slag horses, from the initial hope of more than 30,000 to the final proposal to reduce it to 25,000.
In August, the Hong Kong 10km Championships 2022, commonly known as "Tin Shui Wai 10K", was suddenly ordered by the government 5 days before the race to drastically reduce the number of participants, so President Tian had to cancel the event. The government has increased transparency and made better arrangements and communication.
The Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon is an annual event in the local sports world.
(Getty Images)
The following is the tug-of-war schedule for the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022 and the Hong Kong 10km Championships 2022 between President Tian and the government:
2021
Mr. Tian began to actively communicate with various government departments on the details of the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022.
(From the press conference of President Tian Guan Qi on September 8, 2022)
Dec 1 Announcement of Slag Horse 2022 dates
The conference announced that the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022 will be held on November 20, 2022, and the details and participation quota will be announced.
(From Facebook on December 1, 2021)
The slag horse 2021 was successfully held. Last year, the conference decided that this year's slag horse will be held on November 20.
(File photo/Photo by Li Zetong)
2022
In May, Mr. Tian applied to the government to host Tin Shui Wai 10K
Mr. Tian applied to the government to host the Hong Kong 10km Championships 2022 to be held on August 28. The scale of the event and the requirements for epidemic prevention are similar to those of last year.
(From the visit of President Tian Guan Qi on August 24)
In June, President Tian discussed with the government the quota of slag horses
Mr. Tian discussed with the government about the arrangements for the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022 to be held on November 20. At the beginning, Mr. Tian hoped that 33,000 people could participate in the event.
(From the visit of Sports Commissioner Yang Deqiang on September 19)
Mr. Tian has been in constant communication with the government since June to revise the slag horse plan, which was originally envisaged at 37,000.
(From the press conference of President Tian Guan Qi on September 8)
On August 11, Mr. Tian updated the requirements for 10K epidemic prevention in Tin Shui Wai
Regarding the Hong Kong 10km Championships 2022 held on August 28, President Tian issued the latest notice of epidemic prevention requirements to runners, including the need to complete 3 vaccinations 14 days before the race, and ask runners to confirm on or before August 14 Entry requirements.
(From the announcement of Tian Zong on August 11)
On August 23, the 10K quota for Tin Shui Wai will be greatly reduced.
The government informed Mr. Tian 5 days before the competition that due to the rising local epidemic situation, the Hong Kong 10km Championships 2022, which will be held on August 28, is required to significantly reduce the number of participants, and the number of participants, including staff, should be limited to 500.
However, more than 1,000 people registered for the event.
(From the visit of President Tian Guan Qi on August 24)
Tian Shui Wai 10K was suddenly reduced by the government a few days before the competition, and Tian Zong finally announced the cancellation of the competition.
(File photo/Provided by Mr. Tian)
Noon on August 24th [Cancellation of Tin Shui Wai 10K]
Four days before the Hong Kong 10km Championship 2022, Tian Zong announced the cancellation of the event.
Mr. Tian said that he had applied to the relevant government departments to hold the event as early as May, and has been actively discussing with the government departments and fully cooperating with the requirements of various epidemic prevention measures, including runners must be vaccinated, pre-race virus testing and batch start arrangements, etc. .
After implementing the relevant measures, President Tian is also accepting the registration of runners.
It's a pity that the government finally cut the number of entries drastically.
Mr. Tian believed that all registered and paid runners should have the same opportunity to participate, but this suggestion was not accepted by the government.
All affected entrants will receive a full refund of the paid entry fee.
(From Tian Zong's announcement on August 24)
On the evening of August 24th, President Tian issued a joint statement
As the Hong Kong Swimming Association held the Victoria Harbour Swimming Association at that time, the government also requested to reduce the number of participants, so Tian and the swimmers issued a rare joint statement expressing their disappointment at the government's decision. In the future, Hong Kong sports events can be better arranged and communicated in terms of communication channels and the final decision-making of public health and safety, so as to ensure the integrity of the events and facilitate the successful holding of large-scale sports events of great significance to the sports industry and the public.” ( From the joint statement of President Tian and President Swimming on August 24)
Wu Yuhao, Chief Executive Officer of Tian, said that he hoped the government would have more clear guidelines in the future, such as the number of confirmed cases and the numerical indicators of the scale of the event, so that the organizers can negotiate with the government: "How many confirmed cases, what scale of the event can be held? Is there such a guideline? In this way, the organizers can see how to cooperate, start in batches, extend the road closure time, and even adjust the number of participants. There must be different methods, rather than the current one-size-fits-all approach, and the communication process is not clear, which will make the general manager at a loss. .” Wu Yuhao said that he will continue to communicate with the government about the slag horse, and hope to have news as soon as possible.
(From the visit of Wu Yuhao, Executive Director of Tian Zong, on August 24)
On September 7th, Mr. Tian submitted the final proposal for the number of slag horses
Mr. Tian made a final proposal to the government to reduce the number of participants in the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022 to 25,000.
(From the visit of Sports Commissioner Yang Deqiang on September 19)
The slag horse conference said that it has applied for 25,000 quotas and hoped that the government will approve it within the next week.
From left: Gao Weilin, Chairman of the Slag Horse Preparatory Committee, Guan Qi, Chairman of Tian Zong, Wu Yuhao, Chief Executive Officer (Secretary-General) (photographed by Xia Jialong)
September 8, Mr. Tian expects a reply within the next week
President Tian Guan Qi said at the press conference that the number of participants was reduced to 25,000 after balancing the needs of athletes and the epidemic prevention situation, and in line with the 25th anniversary of the return of Hong Kong and the scumbag.
Guan Qi hopes that the government can reply within next week (before September 17) whether the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022 will be allowed to be held.
(From the press conference of President Tian Guan Qi on September 8)
September 10 Yang Runxiong: I really want to do it but haven't decided
Yang Runxiong said on the radio program that the authorities are discussing arrangements with the health department for the holding of the Hong Kong Standard Chartered Marathon 2022, and there is no final decision yet.
He pointed out that the marathon is a race involving many people, and runners cannot wear masks. In addition, due to road closures affecting public activities, the race cannot be held for a long time.
The whole government "would like to do (marathon)", but it needs to take into account the overall situation of the society. For example, after the event, the number of confirmed cases has risen sharply, and social distancing measures have to be adjusted, which is very involved.
In addition, Yang Runxiong is confident that the snooker masters in October and the international rugby sevens in November will be held as scheduled.
When asked if spectators at the seven-a-side rugby match can drink alcohol, Yang Runxiong pointed out that the government allows citizens to drink water on the field, but they must wear masks after drinking water.
(From the visit of Yang Runxiong, Director of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau on September 10)
Yang Runxiong, director of the Bureau of Culture, Sports and Tourism, was surprised by Mr. Tian's cancellation of the slag horse.
(File photo/Photo by Xia Jialang)
September 16 [Cancellation of Slag Horse]
Sports Commissioner Yang Deqiang said that he was in close communication with Mr. Tian until that day. Mr. Tian said at the time that due to time constraints, he was considering an extension to February next year. At a meeting of the Executive Committee, it decided not to consider the extension and directly announced the cancellation.
(From the visit of Sports Commissioner Yang Deqiang on September 19)
On the evening of September 16, Mr. Tian: No government approval was received
The Hong Kong Athletics Federation announced the cancellation of the event. They said that due to the epidemic situation in Hong Kong, the General Assembly has not yet received approval to hold the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022.
As the original race date is only two months away, runners and stakeholders may not have enough time to prepare, and the Organiser has no choice but to cancel the race to be held on November 20, 2022.
The conference would like to thank all circles for their support to the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon, and will continue to monitor the development of the epidemic and resume the event as soon as possible.
(From the statement of the Zhama Preparatory Committee on September 16)
On the evening of September 16, Yang Runxiong: Let my colleagues know
In response to the cancellation of the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022, Yang Runxiong felt abrupt.
He said: "I also just got this news. I have checked with my colleagues to see if there is anything else I can help. Since we received the application at the end of last week, it has been very hard to process the approval, of course, within the government. There are different departments that need to participate and provide opinions, so as you can see, we have recently approved some competitions and activities one after another, reflecting that the government hopes that more competitions can be held without affecting the epidemic situation and maintaining anti-epidemic measures. Let the public participate. When I suddenly heard the news today, I asked my colleagues to continue to learn about it and see what I can do to help.” (From the interview of Yang Runxiong, Director of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau on September 16)
Sports Commissioner Yang Deqiang.
(Photo by Liang Pengwei)
On the morning of September 19, Yang Deqiang: President Tian had considered rescheduling but refused
The government's sports commissioner, Yang Deqiang, said on the radio program that President Tian had considered rescheduling the event in February next year, and Victoria Park would also have a schedule at that time, but President Tian decided not to postpone the event, but to cancel it.
He will continue to discuss different directions with President Tian, emphasizing that the government will cooperate in response to the epidemic, the number of participants and the track.
He also asked back why it took two months to arrange the competition last year, but not this year. I believe Mr. Tian has his own considerations.
He said that Mr. Tian did not contact the government after he announced the cancellation of the competition on September 16.
(From the visit of Sports Commissioner Yang Deqiang on September 19)
Regarding Yang Deqiang's remarks on the radio program, the reporter asked the public relations company of Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2022 to respond to President Tian or the organizer. Japanese slag horse public relations reply)
Standard Chartered Marathon Cancelled｜Yang Deqiang: There is a schedule in February, Mr. Tian will not consider reiterating that the government will cooperate with Hong Kong sports events. The fate is very different. Race Cancelled Standard Chartered Marathon 2022 | Planned to start on 11.20 next week to decide if the epidemic worsens or cancels