Marathon organizer bans clothing with the phrase "Hong Kong add oil”

Hong Kong Marathon runners wearing clothing with the slogan “Hong Kong add oil” were stopped at the starting line, days after the organizer said the slogan would be acceptable. 

“Add oil” is a Cantonese slang phrase which means “keep it up.”

Hong Kong Marathon's 42-kilometer full marathon, 21km half-marathon and 10km races started on Sunday morning. It is the first mega sports event held in Hong Kong since the national security law took effect last year. 

Several runners were told to change their clothes with logos or slogans that said "Hong Kong add oil" before they could join the race.

A man who tattooed the slogan "Hong Kong add oil" on his leg was asked to cover it with a bandage.

A participant who wore a black undershirt with the word "Hong Kong" on it was also taken to the security checkpoint. 

On last Monday, the event's organizing chairman William Ko Wai-lam said runners are allowed to wear any color to the event as long as "it doesn't affect other runners."

Asked if runners can display political slogans, Ko said the phrase "Hong Kong add oil" should be acceptable, but he still recommended runners reword it to "runners add oil."

On Sunday, Ko said the organizer didn't want any political elements to appear in the sports event. 

No runner has been disqualified due to to their attitre, he said. 

The police said on Saturday that they would send the Counter Terrorism Response Unit and Railway Response Team to cover multiple routes of the marathon races to prevent and fight against terrorism. 

Organizers of the race also said they would seek help from law enforcement agencies if runners breached the law or the event's rules, and cautioned runners against pulling political stunts or making the run a protest. 

Political messages aside, some runners put on attire inspired by Squid Game -- a South Korean drama that went viral recently.

A participant cosplayed as the drama's main character Seong Gi-hun, wearing a jersey with his identifying number "456." Another female runner dressed up as a robot in the drama, which identified failing participants to be shot to death.

Related story: Over 400 Hong Kong Marathon runners injured, one in critical condition