Jockey Club-supported Community Fitness Programme officially launched on the Mainland

05/13/2014

The Hong Kong Jockey Club has long been facilitating co-operation between Hong Kong and Mainland China on the sporting front.  As one of the latest initiatives, the Club today (13 May) announced the launch of a Community Fitness Programme in collaboration with the General Administration of Sport of China (GAS), under which a series of nationwide sport events will be organised to encourage Mainland residents to improve their health through exercise.

The Club and GAS today held a press conference in Beijing to officially inaugurate the Programme.  Among the guests were Club Stewards Dr Rita Fan and The Hon Martin Liao, Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, Executive Director of Strategic Business Development Henry Chan, Minister of GAS Liu Peng, Assistant to Minister of GAS Xiao Min, Director-General of Chinese Leisure Sports Administration Centre Ji Yunxi, Deputy Director-General Zhang Yi and Party Committee Secretary of the Fitness and Qigong Centre of GAS, Huang Linghai. Witnessed by some 50 reporters, Dr Fan and Mr Liu officiated at the Programme’s launch ceremony.  

Dr Fan highlighted the Club’s strong support for the development of equestrian sport on the Mainland as well as for the staging of the equestrian events of the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2010 Asian Games. The Club’s long-standing commitment and contributions to China’s sports development, she said, had showcased its wholehearted concern for the nation, which would continue.

"This state-initiated Community Fitness Programme is a nationwide sports and fitness event that goes in line with the national policy on improving the health of the general public, and it has won widespread support from the community," Dr Fan explained.  "The Club fully agrees with the Programme’s vision and that’s why we have taken concrete action to support its running. This is a valuable chance for us to contribute to our nation’s sports and fitness initiatives."

Under the Programme, the Club will organise four events on the Mainland this year in collaboration with Social Sports Guidance Centre and Health Qigong Management Centre of GAS to promote fitness exercises to the general public.  The Club’s support for these four events includes funding for the purchase of uniforms and training of community fitness instructors in 12 provinces/autonomous regions in the West, along with the staging of exchanges and demonstration sessions for the instructors, the organisation of a sport and cultural exchange summer camp in Sichuan HKJC Olympic School for teenagers in Hong Kong and the Mainland, the provision of qigong instructor training in Sichuan Province, and the staging of across-straits qigong competitions in Guangzhou.

Dr Fan said the Programme, which involved everyone in the community, was worthy of the Club’s support and she hoped it could be a huge success.

Assistant to Minister of GAS Xiao Min sang praises for the Club’s proactive commitment to a wide range of charitable causes in Hong Kong and Mainland China, particularly its tremendous contributions to the state’s sports development as a “premier charity and community benefactor”. The Party and the government had long been committed to the development of sport, she said. In recent years, the GAS had been proactively formulating a framework for sports promotion across the whole nation.  This government-initiated framework, which involved the entire community with the support of various governmental departments, had been developed to mobilise all available resources fully for the more extensive and in-depth operation of the National Fitness Ordinance and running of the National Fitness Programme.  Since GAS and the Club shared a common goal on China’s sports development, she added, the two parties had entered into co-operation to launch this Club-funded Programme.  She hoped the event would be a fruitful one.

During today’s launch ceremony, Ms Xiao presented a commemorative plaque to the Club, after which Olympic champions and national community fitness instructors Wang Liping and Teng Haibin pledged their voluntary services for the Programme.  Also featured were a number of fitness demonstrations such as football, qigong, fitness ball exercises and social dancing.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is not only one of the world’s leading horse racing organisations, but also Hong Kong’s largest community contributor, donating HK$1.95 billion in 2012/13. In addition, the Club is a major taxpayer, Hong Kong’s single largest by far, generating over HK$17.64 billion in 2012/13 for public funds. The Club pioneers technology applications for sporting and betting entertainment, striving for the highest levels of customer service. As a membership club, it is recognised as one of Asia’s most prestigious. These multifaceted roles make it a well-respected and remarkable organisation, dedicated to its mission of enhancing the quality of life for all Hong Kong people.