Angus Ng explains his black outfit in Tokyo Games

Hong Kong badminton player Angus Ng Ka-long explained today that he wore a black shirt in a Tokyo Olympics competition because he did not get the approval to put an Hong Kong SAR emblem on his clothes.

Ng, who won the men’s singles match in group play stage on Saturday by 2:0, was attacked by pro-Beijing activists and netizens as he wore black, similar to the black-clad protesters in 2019 anti-extradition protests.

Nicholas Muk Ka-chun, a member of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), strongly criticised Ng on his facebook yesterday: “I strongly condemn Ng for wearing a black shirt without the HKSAR flag while he is representing Hong Kong! Please withdraw from the game if you do not want to represent Hong Kong, China.”

Ng also aroused the anger of the pro-Beijing netizens after Xinhua news posted the pictures of Ng wearing black in the match. 

Some said:“Why don’t you wear the Hong Kong team t-shirt?”, “Shame on you! Why don’t you quit the Hong Kong, China Team? You should represent the United Kingdom using the identity of a refugee!”

Ng explained the issue today on Instagram, saying he is not wearing clothes with the HKSAR flag because he is now a free agent and has to prepare his own clothes. 

“I don’t have any sponsorship now so I have to wear my own clothes...and I am not authorised to print the HKSAR flag on the t-shirt,” he explained.

“I have always been feeling proud to represent Hong Kong and I like the bauhinia flower a lot,” he wrote.

Ng said he is now solving the problem of his clothes and hopes to fix it before his next competition.

“I hope everyone can focus on the performance of the athletes instead of what I wear,” he added.

According to the Regional Flag and Regional Emblem Ordinance, a person shall not use the national flag, national emblem, regional flag or regional emblem on their designs in connection with any trade, calling or profession, or the logo, seal or badge of any non-government organisation, except with prior approval. 

Head coach of Hong Kong Badminton team Tim He Yiming said athletes usually wear clothes given by their sponsors in the Olympics.

“Ng has already explained very clearly, he can print his name and the name of the region on his clothes, but not the HKSAR flag. The Olympics has strict rules on the size of clothes, but not on the regional and national flag,” He said.

“Ng did not violate the rules, otherwise he would not be able to join the match. This is what everybody should know,” he added.

The head coach is still confident in Ng: “Ng might be affected by the comments, but as a professional athlete, I believe he can put his focus on the competition and be highly concentrated.”

He also said they are now preparing clothes with the HKSAR flag for Ng.