RECREATION, SPORTS AND THE ARTS
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the autonomy of the national sports associations and assuring the quality of the delivery of sport and recreation in Hong Kong.
In conjunction with the municipal councils, the federation co-ordinated the comprehensive Annual Festival of Sport held since 1958. It also organises extensive education programmes for sports leaders, administrators, coaches and technical officials without charge. Since the early 1970s, many sports leaders and athletes have been sponsored so that they could attend and participate in local and overseas conferences and seminars, such as the annual International Olympic Academy at Olympia.
In conjunction with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Hong Kong Olympic Academy (HKOA) offered courses and programmes to various NSAS. Through the Hong Kong Coaching Committee, more than 4 000 participants have attended coach training programmes in the past four years. In co-operation with the United States Olympic Academy and the University of Oregon, courses on various aspects of sports management and sports science were offered free of charge to the NSAS. Special conferences and seminars on sports medicine and sports science were also organised in conjunction with the Hong Kong Association of Sports Medicine and Sports Science and the Hong Kong Post-Secondary Colleges Athletic Association. These educational activities attracted participants from Hong Kong and the Mainland as well as other parts of the world, and have been praised by the IOC for their comprehensiveness and quality.
The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Horse racing in the Special Administrative Region entered a new era in 1999, with the Hong Kong Jockey Club hosting the world-class Hong Kong International Races in December. Hong Kong for the first time had an International Group 1 race, the highest competitive level of the sport, in the Hong Kong Cup. The Hong Kong Vase and the Hong Kong Mile were both Group 2 races, which attracted top entries and the Jockey Club also introduced the world's richest 1 000-metre dash -the Hong Kong Sprint. The $29.3 million in prize money for the four races placed the meeting in the top echelon of the international racing calendar. The Hong Kong Cup was also the final leg of the inaugural Emirates World Series Racing Championship. Nearly 60 000 racing fans and more than 140 overseas journalists attended the meeting, which was also a Hong Kong Tourist Association's 'spotlight' event.
On the charity side, the Jockey Club continued to provide Hong Kong's principal source of charitable funding for the needy. While the betting turnover had seen some decrease in the past two years due to the regional economic downturn, the club stayed true to its 'Racing for Charity' motto. A sum of $1.069 billion was donated to 176 charities and community projects through the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in 1998-99, an increase of $43 million from the previous year.
Provisional Urban Council Sports and Recreation Programmes
With the aim of promoting sport at all levels of the community, the council organised 10 835 recreation and sports activities for 694 400 participants of all ages and abilities in 1999. The total cost was $46.25 million. In addition, the council co-ordinated a series of major recreation and sports programmes, including: the Corporate Games, the Masters Games, the National Day Recreation and Sports Carnival, the 'Come &
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