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Jockey Club Sports Building unveiled to take local elite athlete and coach training to another level

10/29/2015

A ceremonial opening was held today (29 October) for the Jockey Club Sports Building, a multi-purpose elite training and coaching centre at the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI), funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust.  Redeveloped from the former athletes’ hostel, the Jockey Club Sports Building will support the long-term development of Paralympic sports, junior elite athletes and coach education. At the same time, to complement the hardware development of HKSI, the Club will further support the career development of elite athletes and coaches through The Hong Kong Jockey Club Elite Athletes Fund (HKJCEAF) and The Hong Kong Jockey Club Coach Education Programme.

Club Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow joined HKSI Chairman Carlson Tong, Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Betty Fung and other guests at today's opening.  “We hope to help Hong Kong’s elite athletes showcase themselves on the global stage, so as early as the 1970s , we allocated part of the reclaimed land of Sha Tin Racecourse for the construction of the Hong Kong Sports Institute, where we are today,” Mr Chow told the guests. “Over the past 40 years, the Club has donated more than HK$700 million to support the hardware and software development of the Institute, and will fund various support and development programmes to recognise athletes and coaches for the efforts they have put in. At the same time, we are supporting them to develop ‘a dual career pathway’, so that they can devote themselves to sports careers and achieve more.”

HKSI Chairman Carlson Tong said there was valuable synergy in bringing the Institute’s expert coaching teams together in these new world-class facilities.  Boosted by the additional targeted funding, they would help drive its mission to provide an environment in which elite athletes could be identified, nurtured and developed to pursue excellence in the international sporting arena, he explained “We are very grateful to The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust for the comprehensive support it has made over the years.”

Mrs Fung thanked The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust for its support in providing additional training facilities for athletes and coaches on top of the Government-funded HKSI Redevelopment Project. She said the Government would continue working closely with all stakeholders and wished Hong Kong athletes more medal success.

The three-storey Jockey Club Sports Building has a multi-purpose training venue on level 3 with a total floor area of around 20,000 square feet, for use by both Paralympic and able-bodied elite athletes, as well as coaches’ offices, seminar rooms and changing facilities on other levels.

The building also provides a dedicated training area for elite athletes with disabilities, especially for wheelchair fencing and boccia, and will become the home for junior talent development programmes, under which over 1,000 assessed and selected young athletes are nurtured to start their pathway to sports excellence every year. In addition, it will house elite sports coaching departments, providing dedicated education seminar facilities for the training and development of local coaches of all sports.

The total Club donation for the hardware development is over HK$103 million. To complement this, the Club will give further support to the career development of elite athletes and coaches through The Hong Kong Jockey Club Elite Athletes Fund (HKJCEAF) and The Hong Kong Jockey Club Coach Education Programme.

A revised allocation of HKJCEAF will provide additional support to high-performance athletes and their career development in two different areas, benefiting over 2,000 elite athletes each year.

  • Jockey Club Athlete High Performance Programmes:
  • HK$7.5 million has been set aside as an annual contribution to provide athletes with direct financial support and reward Hong Kong medallists at major games. At the same time, a new scheme has been established to recognise Hong Kong elite athletes of all sports reaching top eight positions at World Championships. This will take the form of cash awards, estimated at about HK$1.8 million each year. 
  • Jockey Club Athlete Career-Path Programmes:
  • Resources are being allocated to programmes related to education, vocational and personal development. A new element is designed to recognise the commitment of athletes to full-time training in pursuit of a higher level of sporting achievements while maintaining their studies at senior secondary level.
  • Funding will be used to support social and vocational development and sports exchange opportunities.

 

The Trust has donated HK$9.67 million for HKSI to run The Hong Kong Jockey Club Coach Education Programme for four years. The Programme is expected to benefit close to 10,000 participants each year through four different initiatives:

  • Jockey Club Elite Coaching Development Programmes - an academic and conferencing platform to drive coach development and elite coaching knowledge exchange with local and overseas counterparts, including a partnership with Beijing Sports University to offer a Bachelor of Education in Sports Training degree programme to local candidates.
  • Jockey Club Coaching Accreditation Programmes – a formal accreditation system to offer different levels of professional training, including certificate courses providing formal qualifications at Levels 2 and 3 of the Government's Qualifications Framework, endorsed by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation for Academic and Vocational Qualifications.
  • Jockey Club Community Education and Coach Recognition Programmes - promotional programmes in the community to enhance the public’s understanding of the coaching profession and recognise outstanding coaches through awards and Jockey Club Thanks Coach Scheme.
  • The E-learning Platform - facilitate effective learning through features including online registration, course information, assignment submission and discussion forums, as well as the uploading of class materials and videos.

 

The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a world-class horse racing operator and Hong Kong’s largest community benefactor, as well as one of Asia’s most prestigious membership clubs. Operating as a not-for-profit organisation, the Club allocates its surplus funds for charitable and community projects. In 2014/15, its donations reached a record $3.87 billion, and in the last decade alone it supported over 1,300 projects. The Club is also Hong Kong’s largest single taxpayer, contributing a record HK$20.05 billion in 2014/15. With about 70% of its revenue given back to society every year through donations and tax contributions, The Hong Kong Jockey Club delivers a significantly higher return to the community than any other racing and/or sports betting organisation in the world. As a socially responsible organisation, the Club helps Government combat illegal betting and advocates responsible gambling. The Club is also one of Hong Kong’s largest employers with over 24,000 full-time and part-time staff. Committed to global excellence and giving back to society, the Club is always “riding high together for a better future” with the people of Hong Kong.

Club Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow says the Club has been investing more than HK$700 million in the HKSI since the early 1970s as it hopes to help Hong Konga£á?s elite athletes showcase themselves on the global stage.
Club Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow says the Club has been investing more than HK$700 million in the HKSI since the early 1970s as it hopes to help Hong Konga£á?s elite athletes showcase themselves on the global stage.

Club Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow (2nd right) joins Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges (1st right), Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Betty Fung (3rd left), HKSI Chairman Carlson Tong (2nd left) and Chief Executive Dr Trisha Leahy (1st left) in unveiling a plaque to mark the opening of the Jockey Club Sports Building.
Club Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow (2nd right) joins Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges (1st right), Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Betty Fung (3rd left), HKSI Chairman Carlson Tong (2nd left) and Chief Executive Dr Trisha Leahy (1st left) in unveiling a plaque to mark the opening of the Jockey Club Sports Building.

The HKSI's Head Table Tennis Coach Chan Kong-wah (2nd left) and Acting Head Windsurfing Coach Chan King-yin (1st right) share experiences with leading Hong Kong billiard sports player Ng On-yee (centre) and wheelchair fencer Yu Chui-yee (2nd right) during the opening ceremony for the Jockey Club Sports Building.
The HKSI's Head Table Tennis Coach Chan Kong-wah (2nd left) and Acting Head Windsurfing Coach Chan King-yin (1st right) share experiences with leading Hong Kong billiard sports player Ng On-yee (centre) and wheelchair fencer Yu Chui-yee (2nd right) during the opening ceremony for the Jockey Club Sports Building.

Group photo.
Group photo.

Photos 5/ 6/ 7:<br>
Officiating guests tour the Jockey Club Sports Building and enjoy demonstrations of karatedo and wheelchair fencing.
Photos 5/ 6/ 7:
Officiating guests tour the Jockey Club Sports Building and enjoy demonstrations of karatedo and wheelchair fencing.



Club Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow (2nd right), Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges (1st right), Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Betty Fung (centre), HKSI Chairman Carlson Tong (2nd left) and Vice-chairman Michael T H Lee (1st left).
Club Deputy Chairman Anthony W K Chow (2nd right), Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges (1st right), Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs Betty Fung (centre), HKSI Chairman Carlson Tong (2nd left) and Vice-chairman Michael T H Lee (1st left).

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