ENG-2001 — Page 494

RECREATION, SPORT AND THE ARTS

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For close to half a century, the federation has co-ordinated a comprehensive three- month Festival of Sports, commencing in March every year. It also organises extensive education programmes for sports leaders, administrators, coaches and technical officials free of charge, notably through the Hong Kong Olympic Academy (HKOA) which offers free sports management and sport science courses and programmes.

With the support of sponsors, each year the federation organises the Hong Kong Sports Stars Awards, the 'Oscars' of Hong Kong sports to honour the achievements of top sportsmen and women. The 2001 prize presentation was held in February in conjunction with the federation's annual spring dinner, which attracted a large turnout in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The election of the President of the SF&OC, Mr Timothy T. T. Fok, as a member of the International Olympic Committee at the 112th IOC Session, held in Moscow in July, represented a milestone in Hong Kong's sports history.

Hong Kong Jockey Club

The Hong Kong Jockey Club had an excellent year in its core business of racing with the season highlight being the Hong Kong International Races, a premier event in the international calendar. This meeting, held in December, ranked as the third richest race meeting in the world. It featured four International Group races, including the Group One Hong Kong Cup the final leg of the Emirates World Series. The meeting, which attracted top thoroughbreds and leading jockeys from nine countries in the northern and southern hemispheres, was beamed to a global television audience in 60 countries and covered by a 400-strong press corps.

Horses racing in Hong Kong have been improving in quality, and the best of them have increasingly taken part in international competition overseas. Indeed, the strength of Hong Kong racing was underlined when the champion Hong Kong-based horse, Fairy King Prawn, was rated the world's number one sprinter in the four-year- olds and above category in the International Classifications.

During the year, the Jockey Club continued to be innovative in introducing new technology in racing entertainment and betting facilities. In addition, facilities for race patrons were further enhanced by the installation of the world's biggest trackside Diamond Vision Screen at the Happy Valley racecourse on Hong Kong Island.

For many years, the Jockey Club has contributed substantial funds towards charitable and worthy causes that benefit the community. In the latest year, the club contributed a total of $1,064 million to over 180 charities and community projects in four key sectors: medical and health; education and training; sports, recreation and culture; and community services. For its financial year ending June 30, 2001, the club paid $10,946 million in betting duty and $1,272 million in lottery duty to the Government. The total tax payments by the club amounted to some 12 per cent of the Government's tax revenue in 2000-2001.

Recreation and Sports Programmes

With the aim of promoting sport at all levels of the community, the LCSD organised 24 170 recreation and sports programmes for 1 361 710 participants of all ages and abilities in 2001. The total cost of these programmes was $101 million. In addition, the department organised a series of major recreation and sports programmes