HONG KONG ANNUAL REPORT, 1953
Perhaps the greatest improvement is in the New Territories, where athletics and basketball are flourishing, and a New Territories Schools Sports Association has been established.
Association football continues in popularity, but further growth is limited by the lack of pitches.
Hockey has started again and an unofficial schoolboy interport was played with Macao.
Racing. This sport continued to flourish and attendances to increase.
The annual meeting was held in January, and the Pearce Memorial Cup, the first big race for 1953 subscription ponies, was won by Exhibition Day.
The previous year's Griffins Champion won the Sassoon Challenge Cup at the Easter meeting, but failed in the Corona- tion Cup.
In March, Sir Authur Morse, the Chairman, who had done much for racing in the Colony, left on retirement to England. He was succeeded as Chairman by Mr. D. Benson.
Two notable features of the season's riding were the fine average of Mr. J. Pote-Hunt, who rode 9 winners in 27 mounts, and the advent of a promising novice rider in Flt. Lt. Plumbly, who since his arrival in the Colony has ridden four winners in thirty-four mounts. Mr. M. Samarcq was the jockey with the greatest number of winning mounts.
Table Tennis. A representative team took part at the second Asian Table Tennis Championships held in Japan, and Hong Kong was placed third. As a result of this defeat players were encouraged to undertake additional training and their standard improved considerably. The subsequent success achieved in other matches during the year was sufficient evi- dence of the wisdom of this policy.
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