ENG-1966 — Page 301

RECREATION

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Almost every sport and team game is played in Hong Kong, but the one which enjoys by far the greatest following is association football. Fans turn up 20,000 strong at the Government Stadium and 10,000 strong at the nearby South China Athletic Stadium for big matches. Football in Hong Kong has all the partisan fervour, and not a few of the troubles, of football anywhere. Hockey also is played with skill by people of all nationalities in Hong Kong, including women's teams. Many of those who shine in competitive sport are members of privately run clubs whose only assistance from public funds consists of a short-term lease of land on special terms. But for the majority of people the opportunity to take part in sports which require special facilities depends on the provision of government amenities.

In Hong Kong the provision of public recreation facilities for each section of the community according to its needs is a compara- tively new development. As recently as 1952 virtually the only public facilities for a total population of some 2 million were the bathing beaches, many then inaccessible to most townsfolk, the Botanic Gardens and Happy Valley playing fields on Hong Kong Island, and, in Kowloon, three children's playgrounds. The first hard-surface pitches for mini-football and basketball were not built until 1953, while Hong Kong Island did not get its first children's playground until 1957. The completion of Victoria Park in that year marked the birth of a new approach to recreation facilities. Responsibility for providing these amenities in the urban area is vested in the Urban Council, working through the Urban Services Department. In the New Territories the responsibility rests with the Director of Urban Services, working closely with the District Commissioner.

The pace of development has increased greatly in recent years and the Parks, Recreation and Amenities Division of the Urban Services Department now manages a total of 1,103 acres of public open space. The facilities include 226 parks and gardens; 104 children's playgrounds and six children's libraries; 24 grass games pitches for soccer, hockey and rugby; 42 hard-surface mini-football pitches; 143 courts for basketball, volleyball and badminton; 25 tennis courts; two running tracks; two olympic standard swimming pools; 36 bathing beaches with a total length of 8.4 miles; two bowling greens; two squash courts; four model boat pools; two