ENG-1999 — Page 453

RECREATION, SPORTS AND THE ARTS

Hong Kong Stadium

This is Hong Kong's largest sports venue, and able to seat 40 000 spectators for football and rugby matches. Other events, such as major entertainment spectacles which commemorated the 50th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China are also held there. More than 373 000 spectators participated in 24 events at the venue in 1999.

Indoor Stadia

The Hong Kong Coliseum and the Queen Elizabeth Stadium are Hong Kong's largest multi-purpose indoor stadia. The 12 500-seat Hong Kong Coliseum is a leading venue for pop concerts, entertainment spectaculars, international sporting events and cultural programmes. The 3 600-seat Queen Elizabeth Stadium plays host to smaller scale sports events and a range of popular entertainment and cultural programmes. In 1999, 416 performances were staged in the two stadia, attracting over 1 862 385 people.

Other Sports and Recreational Venues

In 1999, the Provisional Urban Council managed 43 indoor sports halls or leisure centres, 17 swimming pool complexes, 145 tennis courts, 195 squash courts, one water sports centre and nine sports grounds.

Seven major new recreation and sports venues were completed: the Stanley Waterfront Playground in Southern District; the Anchor Street Playground in Mong Kok; the Lai Chi Kok Temporary Recreation Ground in Sham Shui Po District; the Shun Lee Tsuen Park and Leisure Centre in Kwun Tong District and the Ho Man Tin Park and Leisure Centre in Kowloon City District. Work was in progress on the development of the Sai Wan Ho Leisure Centre in Eastern District, the Hong Ning Road Park, the Sam Ka Tsuen Complex, and the Ping Shek Playground in Kwun Tong District.

Provisional Regional Council Venues

The Provisional Regional Council managed four major civic centres including the town halls in Sha Tin, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun as well as the newly opened Kwai Tsing Theatre. Three smaller ones were also provided to serve the communities in North District, Tai Po and Yuen Long. A new theatre in Yuen Long was under construction and expected to open in 2000.

The council provided and managed 15 sports grounds, 17 swimming pool complexes, 35 indoor recreation centres, 128 tennis courts, 127 squash courts, three golf driving ranges and a public riding school.

It also managed three water sports centres (Chong Hing, Tai Mei Tuk and Wong Shek) and three holiday camps (Lady MacLehose Holiday Village, Sai Kung and Tso Kung Tam Outdoor Recreation Centres). During the year, 58 400 people visited the water sports centres, with another 337 700 enjoying the facilities at the holiday camps.

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Four major sports and leisure facilities were opened during the year Tin Shui Road Park in Yuen Long, Sheung Ning Playground in Sai Kung, Tsing Yi Indoor Recreation Centre in Kwai Tsing and Ma On Shan Sports Ground in Sha Tin. The new swimming pool at the Shing Mun Valley Swimming Complex now provides year-

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