Jockey Club's flagship community event a£á¡§ Riding High Together Festival a£á¡§ kindles creativity among residents this Easter

04/14/2017

The three-day Riding High Together Festival, the annual flagship community event of The Hong Kong Jockey Club held at Sha Tin Racecourse and Penfold Park, attracted about 17,000 visitors on its opening day today (14 April). Visitors witnessed a new world record being set and enjoyed a wide range of activities under the Festival's theme ''Let's Kindle Our Creativity''.

The Club also announced its donation of HK$117 million to expand The Hong Kong Jockey Club Community Project Grant (CPG), which will benefit some 1.1 million local residents in need of services.

The Festival -- now in its third year -- allows the Club to reach out to the community. It is one of Hong Kong's most popular Easter festivals for the family, and a total of 60,000 visitors attended the last two festivals.

Around one thousand participants set Guinness world record

To inspire the Hong Kong community with a positive can-do spirit and to demonstrate how the Club works with the community for a better future, an attempt was made to set a new Guinness World Record for The Largest Sculpting Lesson. Two world records had already been broken in the previous two festivals.

Witnessing the challenge were Club Chairman Dr Simon S O Ip; Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges; the Executive Director, Corporate Planning, Communications and Membership Scarlette Leung, as well as representatives from participating non-governmental organisations, including St. James' Settlement Chief Executive Officer Cynthia Luk; The Boys' & Girls' Clubs Association of Hong Kong Supervisor Ringo Chan; and International Social Service Hong Kong Branch Chief Executive Stephen Yau, joined by Hong Kong Arts Festival Executive Director Tisa Ho and Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel.

Around 1,000 participants took part in the challenge -- under the tutelage of renowned sculptor Johnson Tsang -- created 1,082 clay sculptures of Easter bunnies, thereby demonstrating their creativity and team spirit. After verification, Guinness World Records adjudicator Charles Wharton confirmed that a new world record had been set for the Largest Sculpting Lesson, and presented a certificate to the Club. 

Dr Ip acknowledged the efforts of the partnering organisations and schools, and reminded them about the spirit of partnership, ''We now have three world records due to the efforts of over 3,000 people. I hope today's experience will encourage us to unleash our potential and embrace the Festival's theme ‘Let's Kindle Our Creativity','' he said.

Expanded Community Project Grant launched

The Club also announced at the Festival its HK$117 million donation to expand the CPG, which will support 65 partner agencies, and benefit some 1.1 million local residents in need of services. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Stephen Sui as well as representatives of the partner agencies also attended the launch ceremony.
Dr Ip said the Club was able to extend its support to a wider audience because of the staunch contribution of the passionate community partners who knew intimately about the community needs and cared deeply about the disadvantaged and underprivileged in the society. The Club saw them as its strategic partners and would help them sustain and develop their services over the longer term.
''The Club's Charities Trust saw a need 12 years ago and hence established the CPG,'' he explained. ''This three-year grant is paid annually in advance, giving the agencies the up-front resources they need to plan and fund their projects.'' He added more than HK$1 billion in CPGs have been disbursed since 2005.
Mr Sui applauded The Hong Kong Jockey Club for establishing platforms for cross-sectoral collaboration to address important areas of social needs. He said, ''The Community Project Grant complements the Government's existing provision and helps fill critical service gaps. I am particularly impressed to know that the Club will also be providing non-financial support to recipient NGOs in the form of training and experience-sharing.'' 

The CPG is designed to support partners with ongoing funding, enabling them to offer diversified services for disadvantaged groups. The CPG is being expanded this year, with the addition of four more agencies to help nurture arts talent and social innovation, encouraging more public participation. The agencies include the Hong Kong Youth Arts Foundation; the Hong Kong Youth Hostels Association; the Jockey Club Creative Arts Centre; and the Make A Difference Institute.

In addition to providing stable funding, the CPG will also be strengthened to help build the capacity of participating agencies, and create opportunities for them to learn from experts and share experiences with each other. Four training sessions on project monitoring and evaluation have been held, and more activities of a similar nature will be organised in the near future.

Horse encounters and ''Edutainment'' activities to connect with the community

The three-day Festival features over 70 ''edutainment'' activities in ten zones arranged around five themes: Horse Encounters, Inspiration & Fun, Let's be Active, Snap & Share, and Live Performances.

Under the theme ''Let's Kindle Our Creativity'', Master Classes by acclaimed artists are new activities at this year's Festival. With the guidance of seven master artists, visitors have opportunities to embrace diverse art forms, ranging from local traditional pieces to modern Western ones. The Riding High Together Exhibition showcases the Club's contribution to arts and culture in Hong Kong, allowing them to learn more about Hong Kong's intangible cultural heritage through games and photo booths.

Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel has been invited to meet and play football with visitors. The Club has again collaborated with the world-renowned Manchester United Football Club to organise HKJC Soccer 4. Through the tournament, four outstanding players will have the opportunity to pursue their football dream and visit Manchester United's training base in the UK. A new programme this year - Family Football Fun - offers parents a unique opportunity to coach and work with their kids.

As always, the Festival provides lots of opportunities to get up close and personal with horses. Local riders will be demonstrating their equestrian skills in Penfold Park. There are also horse care demonstrations, photo opportunities with cute Shetland ponies, as well as pony rides for kids. This event underscores the Club's effort to provide world-class equestrian activities and horse care services. Renowned cross-media artist Simon Ma's large-scale ''Loving Hearts'' installation art is also on display throughout the Festival. Visitors can interact with the different-sized inflatable hearts. This will undoubtedly be a popular photo opportunity.

Riding High Together Lunch held to thank the elderly

The first of the 18 Riding High Together Lunches for the Elderly was also held on the first day of the Festival at Sha Tin Racecourse to express the Club's gratitude to the elderly for their tremendous contribution to Hong Kong's development.

Club Chairman Dr Ip, Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, Chairman of Wan Chai District Council Stephen Ng and a number of District Councillors, as well as District Officer (Wan Chai) Rick Chan enjoyed a scrumptious lunch with over 120 elderly people from the Wan Chai district.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club

The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a not-for-profit enterprise dedicated to community betterment. Through its integrated business model of world-class racing, responsible sports wagering and lottery, and charity and community contribution, the Club generates substantial economic and social value and assists the Government in combatting illegal gambling. In 2015/16 the Club donated a record HK$3.9 billion to charity and paid a record HK$20.9 billion in tax. It is Hong Kong's largest single tax payer and one of the world's largest charity donors. 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.