More blessed to give than to receive National Games volunteers reflect unity and service to our country

The 15th National Games (NG), the 12th National Games for Persons with Disabilities (NGD) and the 9th National Special Olympic Games (NSOG), the country’s highest-level and largest national multi-sport event, were successfully concluded. Co-hosted by Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao, the Games saw the efforts of not only participating athletes but also the exceptional service and hospitality of numerous selfless volunteers. The volunteers interviewed unanimously felt that serving at the National Games, a grand event of national importance, gave them a deeper appreciation of the nation’s prosperity and progress and instilled in them a sense of honor in carrying out this responsibility.

To facilitate the smooth operation of Hong Kong events of the 15th NG, the 12th NGD and the 9th NSOG, the National Games Volunteer Programme (NGVP) assembled over 16,000 volunteers to provide a diverse range of services. Those who were recruited had to undergo training, both online and physical, before they could provide support for the Hong Kong events. The volunteers, ranging from participating youth to experienced individuals, were tasked with a variety of responsibilities, including but not limited to: spectator services, crowd control, off-site assistance, reception services, accreditation services, venue support, media operations, award ceremony protocol, and more. On November 15th alone, six events were held simultaneously, during which nearly 2,500 volunteers mobilized to support various operational tasks, with some arriving as early as 3 am to ensure a smooth-running process for the event. November 12th to 14th were also physically demanding days for volunteers as they assisted a large stadium of 50,000 Rugby Sevens spectators, stemming from ticket verification and on-site guidance to media operations and environmental promotion.

During the competition period, over 1,000 youth volunteers from 31 schools and 31 groups participated in supporting the Games. Whilst collaborating with other volunteers, many developed a better understanding of teamwork and sportsmanship through their service.

Fuelled by his love for helping people, 18-year-old Leo Wang Yu-Wei assisted in spectator services during the Triathlon on November 15th and 16th. As a member of the Youth Link under the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau and the Hong Kong Red Cross Youth Unit, volunteering is nothing new to him. “I think volunteering is an activity that benefits both society and yourself,” said Wang. Participating as a youth volunteer, Wang maintains a degree of flexibility as his role may change based on the situation, but even if it meant standing under the sun for hours, it was a challenge he accepted with ease. “To be able to see so many national athletes gathered together gives me a sense of pride,” Wang said, “knowing that we have so many strong people in this country.”

Another youth volunteer is 17-year-old Limbu Basant, who also supported spectator services during the Triathlon. The NG were his first time volunteering at such a large-scale nationwide event, and as he did not speak Chinese, it was also an opportunity for him to overcome different social challenges he faced from his front-line position. “I just used my phone,” Basant laughed when asked how he overcame the language barrier with visitors, “But I also asked my peer to translate for me. Being a volunteer means you have to talk with others, and that includes talking to your peers.”

With the huge number of enthusiastic volunteers, experience and coordination are required to ensure the health and safety of such a large-scale event. That is where individuals such as 82-year-old Bond Chan Yee-Pon come in. A retiree who has been volunteering since the “Keep Hong Kong Clean” campaign in the 1970s, he assisted in the Torch Relay and Cross-boundary Road Cycling (Men’s Individual Race) events for the NG, as well as Wheelchair Fencing for the 12th NGD and the 9th NSOG from December 9th to 11th.

Having witnessed different situations that could have easily escalated into catastrophes, such as crowd crush or heat stroke, Chan has developed an acute sense of awareness that could only be honed by years of city-wide volunteering activities, including details and practices many may overlook. For example, one of the first things he does when he arrives is familiarising himself with the layout of the event space. “So that way you know how to react when problems arise,” he instructed.

But despite his experience, Chan chose to take on a basic volunteer position in hopes that more leadership opportunities could be given to the youth. “I think the proactiveness of this generation is admirable, how willing they are to help and support those in need,” Chan said. With the 15th NG being the first time Hong Kong has ever hosted this major event, this year’s youth volunteers made Bond confident of Hong Kong’s capabilities.

“I believe we are capable of hosting even larger events,” Chan said firmly.

As for 25-year-old Vanessa Cheung Cheuk-Nam, her many years working as a volunteer allowed her to become a better A3 Volunteer Team Leader during Rugby Sevens. “A1 and A2 leaders are similar to the director of a company,” Cheung explained, “A3 is a bit more specialised, as we are directly in charge of 10 to 20 volunteers at once. During Rugby Sevens, there were over 30 A3 volunteer leaders coordinating with each other.”

“It’s not very often we get large-scale events like this in Hong Kong. During my participation, I can hone my leadership skills and other various capabilities” Cheung added, “When you are at school or at work, you are often collaborating with people you are familiar with. Opportunities like these allow you to not only work with different people, but to see how different people work as well. It’s a flexibility you may not learn in your daily life.”

As a leader, her care extends not only to visitors but to other volunteers as well, utilising her design skills to create colourful instructions to enhance volunteers’ sense of engagement. “You do sacrifice your personal time as a volunteer, so we want our team to also feel the joy and support being a part of the NG” she said.

In charge of media operations, Cheung has assisted countless media personnel, serving as both liaison and docent in connecting them to different aspects of Hong Kong. Her passion stems from her love for the city, and a desire to share these personal stories.

To Cheung, volunteering may not be the main identity of a person, but it is important as it is a role where you are working solely towards helping others. “I think nowadays the youth are taking on different roles and positions in society in an effort to give back to the city. Some values you can’t fulfill at work, so you look somewhere else, and volunteering is one of them,” Cheung emphasised, “As long as you want to work towards helping others, you can be a volunteer.”