The organizer of the Hong Kong Streetathon apologized for the inconvenience experienced by participants due to prolonged queues for baggage retrieval, attributed to a malfunction in the newly implemented system.
Andes Leung Pak-hang, co-founder and chief executive of RunOurCity, acknowledged the difficulties encountered with the baggage collection system, which hindered the ability to assess the number of runners accurately.
Leung reported that some runners endured waits ranging from one to two hours for their belongings. He apologized for the situation and expressed his commitment to reviewing the process.
With the assistance of additional staff and police presence, all full and half-marathon participants had successfully collected their baggage by approximately 12:45 PM. It was learned that around 2,000 runners were affected.
He elaborated on the intent to leverage technology this year by utilizing QR code scanning on runners’ bibs to facilitate targeted tracking and retrieval of bags, thereby eliminating the need for manual sorting as employed in previous years.
The intention was to reduce waiting times, but the system experienced a malfunction that failed to recognize the QR codes, resulting in additional time to reorder the bags and ultimately failing to meet the anticipated expectations.
Leung added they had rolled out multiple system tests and prepared backup scanners at the venue beforehand, but the final outcome differed from those expected.
Regarding runners entering the baggage area to locate their belongings, Leung acknowledged the practice was inappropriate. He admitted that the staff responsible for crowd control underestimated the reaction during the baggage retrieval issues and did not anticipate the necessity for additional staff to restrict access to the area.
He committed to improving staff allocation and to enhancing contingency plans for comparable incidents in the future.
Meanwhile, Leung said that more than 18,600 people participated in the event this year, with an attendance rate of about 85 percent.
Among them, over 300 were unwell or injured, with eight sent to hospitals and four required hospitalization.
