According to the directors, the reconstruction of the aging facilities is a ``must'' for the future development of local sports, and the equestrian plans have only hastened the need.

While Hong Kong awaits a decision from the International Olympic Committee on whether it can host the equestrian events in 2008, the suggested plan to build equine facilities at the Sha Tin sports venue after relocating the athletes has aroused controversy.

Top athletes have vehemently criticized the plan as it comes only two years before the 2008 Olympic games.

According to a Beijing official interviewed by TVB Monday, the final decision on the equestrian events will come ``very soon.''

If the SAR is to host the equestrian events, the Sha Tin venue is expected to be handed over to the Jockey Club a year from now to build the new facilities.

But the facilities will not be permanent and will be demolished in order to return the land to the institute.

Officials said Monday that when the venue is returned, the facilities will have been refurbished.

Currently, the Sports Institute is the training field for 170 elite athletes for 15 sports, including windsurfing, fencing, rowing and some sports for the disabled. A further 370 junior athletes also train there.

In a meeting held Monday to discuss the future of the institutewhich was attended by officials and about 100 athletes, the government proposed converting a youth recreational site in Wu Kai Sha into a temporary training field for affected athletes.

Secretary for Home Affairs Patrick Ho said that the facilities at Wu Kai Sha will be upgraded and will be ``better'' than the current Sha Tin site.

But former leading cyclist Hung Chung-yam, who is now the chairman of the Hong Kong Elite Athletes Association, said the Wu Kai Sha facilities are far cry from acceptable and called the Sports Institute ``the soul'' of Hong Kong athletics.

``We are deeply regretful [about the decision] ... we are not sure about [the] rationale,'' he said, adding that local sports may have to pay the price.

Local sports moguls and the SAR have gone to great lengths to gain the equestrian hosting rights.

``This [hosting the equestrian events] is the chance of the century. Hong Kong can never host an Olympic Games,'' vice president of the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong Victor Hui said Monday.

The institute's vice chairman Chan Kai-ming said the Olympic event will be beneficial to the Sha Tin venue because it will speed up the redevelopment process.

Hui said that the redevelopment idea had been brought up previously but was shelved because of inadequate financing.

According to an assessment report conducted eight years ago and quoted by Hui, the redevelopment project would cost HK$1.6 billion.

``It is ridiculous,'' said legislator Chan Wai-yip, who labeled the relocation plan as ``serving political needs,'' and ``sacrificing athletes.''

He said it is a waste of money to build the equestrian facilities only to tear them down later. ``A government with a long-vision should find a new place where citizens can permanently enjoy the facilities,'' he said.

``We want to know why the institute was chosen to become the venue for the equine events,'' said Fung Ying-ki, a member of Hong Kong Sports Association for the Physically Disabled.

He also disagreed with the idea of relocating the athletes, saying the Wu Kai Sha site is for recreation, not elite sports training.

The Jockey Club chose the Sha Tin site after a study by an Australian consultant, which favored its proximity to the club's Sha Tin's race course.

According to reports, the Jockey Club will build at its own stables for 300 horses, as well as a temporary 20,000-seat stadium at the Sha Tin site.

Unconfirmed reports also suggest the club is planning to keep the grass pitches and the golf driving range permanently as part of its extension plan for the Sha Tin racecourse.

dennis.chong@singtaonewscorp.co