I was glad last Saturday to be among the spectators at a packed-out centre court in Victoria Park, enjoying a very entertaining tennis match between Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams. It was a real pleasure for me to watch these two top stars showing their brilliant tennis skills here in Hong Kong. And with the Club serving the official caterer to the tournament, I was equally delighted to hear a lot of the attendees praising the high quality of the food.
I think the tournament organisers have done a very successful job in hosting this event. However, I think the venue, which was built some 20 years ago, is no longer on a par with world-class standards. I believe we have a dire need to construct a world-class sports venue here in Hong Kong, as not only can it respond to the competition of the new sporting venues now available in Macau and other neighbouring cities, but also allow more people to enjoy the world-class sports events held in Hong Kong each year.
This was something that we recognised on the horse racing side some years ago, when the Club embarked on a programme of enhancing its racecourse facilities to spur future development. The substantial investments we've made in our racing business since then have not only provided our Club Members and racegoers with better services and a more exciting racing experience, but have also helped build the reputation of Hong Kong and its horse racing internationally.
It was obvious at Saturday's match that Venus Williams really enjoyed playing in Hong Kong, as after she won the match, she took out a camera to have her photo taken with some of her fans. This interactive move was a kind of compliment she repaid to the spectators for their cheers and support throughout the match. I think every sports lover would appreciate gestures like this, when the athletes show their charisma by interacting with them.
Likewise in our sport of racing, I'm always happy to see some of our star jockeys interacting with our racing fans after winning their races, as a thank-you for their support and encouragement. It has two-way benefits as the jockeys draw the racing crowd closer to them, while the racing fans can enjoy a more personal involvement in our sport. In my opinion, our French jockey Olivier Doleuze is the one with best interactions with you all and I hope more jockeys would share their joyful moments with racing fans after winning their races.
Another two major local racing events will kick off on 20 January when Sha Tin hosts the opening legs of the 2007/08 Citi Triple Crown series and Mercedes-Benz 4-year-old classic series. Horses like Viva Pataca, Vengeance Of Rain, Good Ba Ba, Never Look Back and Green Birdie, are already among the entries for the Citi Stewards' Cup and Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Classic Mile, as unveiled on Monday. I expect their trainers to be giving their horses the final preparations for these two top events in the coming week.
Before that, though, we have eight races taking place at Happy Valley tonight. I will be paying special attention to Frontier (Race 4) and Encore Win (Race 5), as both horses are with nice form and promising performance in their latest runs.
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