Hong Kong athletes delivered the city’s greatest ever performance at a single National Games, storming to nine golds, two silvers, and eight bronzes and obliterating previous highs for both gold and overall medal counts at the 15th Games.
The historic run triggered HK$11.475 million in cash awards from the Jockey Club Athlete Incentive Awards Scheme.
Individual golds earned HK$750,000 each, silvers HK$375,000, and bronzes HK$150,000, while team-event medals doubled those amounts.
Cyclist Ceci Lee Sze-wing emerged as the biggest winner, pocketing HK$2.25 million after taking gold in the women’s individual road race, women’s omnium, and sharing the women’s Madison title with teammate Leung Wing-yee.
The newly crowned “Queen of the Games” laughed that she plans to simply save every cent.
Swimming superstar Siobhán Haughey banked HK$1.8 million for her two freestyle golds and two bronze medals in the sprint breaststroke and freestyle events.
Fencer Aaron Ho Sze-long, who claimed a silver in men’s individual sabre, took home HK$375,000 and promptly declared the entire sum would go straight to his wife, retired fencer Debbie Ho, joking that he never keeps pocket money anyway.
Across the 602-strong delegation, the record medal haul capped a Games to remember and sent prize money soaring past any previous edition.
