446 Recreation, Sport and the Arts
Hong Kong Sports Institute Limited
The Hong Kong Sports Institute Limited, established in October 2004, provides an environment in which sport talent can be identified, nurtured and developed to pursue excellence in sport. Other than sports facilities, the support given to athletes includes elite coaching and training, sports science, sports medicine, strength and conditioning, athlete affairs and education, applied research and sports information. There are 13 sports in the elite training programme: athletics, badminton, cycling, fencing, rowing, squash, swimming, table tennis, tennis, tenpin bowling, triathlon, windsurfing and wushu.
Sporting Achievements
Hong Kong athletes achieved significant success in 2004, winning a total of 210 gold, 205 silver and 202 bronze medals at their respective national, Asian and international championships.
The HKSAR sent a squad of 32 athletes to compete in the Athens Olympic Games, with the table tennis players winning an historic silver medal in the men's doubles. A Hong Kong athlete also recorded a fourth place in women's windsurfing.
Hong Kong's disabled athletes achieved unprecedented success in the Athens Paralympic Games. They won 11 gold, seven silver and one bronze medals in competition events and one silver medal in demonstration events, ranking first in the wheelchair fencing event and 17th in the gold medal tally for all events among 136 countries.
Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China
The Amateur Sports Federation and Olympic Committee (SF&OC) of Hong Kong was founded in 1949-50 and reorganised as a National Olympic Committee (NOC) in 1951. It changed to its present name of Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China with effect from March 8, 1999. The federation is a member of the International Olympic Committee, the Olympic Council of Asia and the Association of National Olympic Committees and has been responsible for organising Hong Kong's participation in such major multi-sports games as the Olympic, Asian, East Asian, Pacific and National Games. With a membership of 72 National Sports Associations (NSAs), it represents the collective voice of the Hong Kong sports community.
Members of the SF&OC are NSAs, which are in turn affiliated to their International Federations (IFS) and Asian Federations (AFS). They are empowered to coordinate and conduct a wide range of activities related to their sports, from organising sports and recreation programmes for beginners to training of elite athletes; organising and sanctioning participation in local and overseas competitions and tournaments and the training of coaches and referees. NSAs implement and enforce local and international rules and regulations, and they represent Hong Kong in meetings of the IFS and the AFS.