Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP) is fully prepared for the National Games after extensive testing and numerous events since the March opening, according to Tang King-shing, the strategic planning director overseeing operations at the venue.
Hong Kong, along with Guangdong and Macau, will host the event from November 9 to 21 – and the multipurpose sports facility will host rugby sevens at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium, with fencing and men’s handball at the 10,000-seat Kai Tak Arena.
Tang said the experience of hosting sports and music events at Kai Tak meant his team had a “basic plan” for everything.
“Whether it is the Olympics, the Asian Games, or the National Games, there’s no difference,” he said. “The General Administration of Sport of China (GASC) has a set of rules regarding the National Games.
“From the flow of people to and from the arenas, to the finest details of the angle of a rooftop spotlight and even the lines on the court, the Chinese officials had been nailing these details even before the test events.”
Tang King-shing, director of KTSP (left) and George Tsoi Kin-pan, commissioner for sports. Photo: Mike Chan
Senior government officials added they were past the point of “finalising which door would be open” when the players were leaving the pitches.