Free sports facilities draw crowds on ‘Sport For All Day’ despite complaints

Hong Kong residents flocked to public recreational facilities on Sunday for "Sport For All Day," praising the free-access initiative while some regular users complained of booking difficulties.

To promote healthy lifestyles, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) opened numerous public sports and leisure facilities for free use across the weekend.

At the Lockhart Road Sports Centre in Wan Chai, one badminton player mentioned that she and her husband had successfully secured free slots on both days. 

She noted that she has enjoyed using the free facilities during the event for several consecutive years and expressed hope that the government would continue the policy. 

Another resident playing basketball said this was his first time winning a free slot through the government's ballot system, describing the initiative as highly attractive.

However, the program faced criticism from some regular facility users. One resident, who regularly books table tennis courts, explained that the free admission made it significantly harder to reserve a court. 

He added that the free slots are capped at one hour, which is less than the consecutive two-hour blocks regular players typically enjoy.

Furthermore, several swimmers at the Morrison Hill Swimming Pool admitted they were unaware that the pool was open for free, pointing to a lack of government promotion.

Another swimmer estimated that the pool's crowd size was roughly one-third larger than on a typical Sunday, adding that the initiative was a great incentive to encourage the public to exercise.

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽 ↓