I feel both relieved and delighted that after three years' preparation and hard work, the Olympic equestrian events in Hong Kong came to a successful conclusion last Thursday.
I attended all of the events at Sha Tin and Beas River during the 12 days of competition and got the chance to chat with quite a number of the participating riders, spectators and overseas journalists. It was very satisfying to hear so many of them give the thumbs-up to our equestrian venues, our healthcare to horses, transportation and stable, as well as quarantine and lab testing. Some even described them as the best yet in the Olympics. IOC president Jacques Rogge and his predecessor, IOC honorary president Juan Antonio Samaranch, also came down from Beijing to watch the equestrian events and were full of praise for the venue facilities and great atmosphere here, hailing the event as outstanding.
I must admit we were very fortunate not to be affected by adverse weather, as Hong Kong was hit by a severe tropical storm just two days before the opening of the Games, then last week typhoon Nuri swept the city only hours after the equestrian events had been completed. In between those times, we enjoyed some quite pleasant weather conditions, and that played a huge part in the smooth running of the events.
What really made them so successful, though, was the hard work put in by everyone behind the scenes, both before and during the events. Here I must take the opportunity to offer my sincere thanks to all Club staff for their tremendous efforts and support for an excellent job that make ourselves and the whole Hong Kong proud. They have all shown great team efforts and provided best services in all areas, and along with the top class facilities, they all have effectively promoted Hong Kong as an equine capital both locally and overseas.
For me, the excitement didn't end when the equestrian events came to a close on Thursday night, as I had the chance to go to Beijing and watch the men's football final between Argentina and Nigeria in the National Stadium last Saturday. It was a very exciting match and, given the fact that the teams had to play under the hot midday sun, I think the performances of both sides were brilliant. Apart from football, as a person who loves jogging and running, I paid a lot of attention to the athletic events. I'm sure many of you have been as amazed as I was by the performances of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, who won his three gold medals in such emphatic style. But I also think that the performances of Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia, who won the men's 5,000m and 10,000m events in Olympic record times, was equally fantastic as this distance runner showed great stamina and a strong desire of winning in both events.
As for the Olympic closing ceremony in the amazing National Stadium last Sunday, I believe all of who watched it on TV in Hong Kong would agree with me that the ceremony and all the performances were truly awesome. After seeing both the opening and closing ceremonies, I think that the Chinese people have really demonstrated their Can Do spirit, which I admire and respect a lot.
Hong Kong's time in the spotlight is not over yet, though, as the equestrian events of the Paralympics will begin on Sunday 7 September. Because of their physical limitations, disabled riders have to put even more effort into developing seamless partnerships with their horses, which makes Paralympic riding a very fascinating sport to watch.
It’s a great honour for all of us in the Club to have the opportunity to contribute to these two events, as well as to bring Hong Kong’s equestrian sport to a new level. Now that the sport has built such an immense legacy value in the local community, the Club has also started discussing with the Hong Kong Equestrian Federation ways in which we can further support the promotion and development of the sport, as well as the appreciation of horse and horse riding in Hong Kong. We are very dedicated to this task and it would be great to see the Olympic spirit lasting into the long term in Hong Kong.
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