Marathon striding back to pre-pandemic level

The SAR's biggest mass participation sports event - the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon - will bump the quota for next year's race to 74,000 runners, restoring it to pre-pandemic levels.

The race to be held on January 21 also acts as host to the 19th Asian Marathon Championships, reflecting Hong Kong's status as an international sports event hub. Top runners from 44 Asian countries and regions will be invited to compete.

Kwan Kee, chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Athletics Affiliates, said the return of quotas to the pre-pandemic level indicates that Hong Kong has fully resumed normalcy. And the association will partner with Agency for Volunteer Service to deploy more manpower to assist in organizing the event.

He also said rescheduling the event, which was originally planned for in November, to next January, was in consideration of the cooler weather which would be more comfortable for racers.

About 30,000 runners will participate in the 10 kilometer race, while 22,000 and 21,500 are expected to compete in marathon and half marathon respectively. Another 20 and 50 people will participate in the 10km Wheelchair Race and Wheelchair Trial respectively.

The marathon and half marathon will start from Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, the 10km race will start from the Eastern Corridor, and the two wheelchair races will start from Wan Chai Sports Ground.

All the races will end at Victoria Park.

Members of the public can register for the events from September 21 to October 5. The first round public ballot result will be announced on October 9.

The association's executive director Dennis Ng Yu-ho said runners will be allowed to store their luggage at the starting point in the morning of the race day, but security checks might be required for safety reasons.

In addition, the special HK$10,000 prize which was introduced this year will continue to be awarded to male and female marathon challenge runners who finish the race within three hours and 3.5 hours respectively.

A total of 217 Hong Kong permanent residents, including 151 men and 66 women, received the prize this year.

Hong Kong's star marathoner Christy Yiu Kit-ching, who gave birth to her second child earlier this year, said the award was attractive, adding she would also like to compete next year but it depends on whether she can be selected for the Asian Marathon Championships.

Being held for the fifth time in Hong Kong and also the first race after the pandemic, Kwan said it is Hong Kong's honor to host the 19th Asian Marathon Championships.

"The Asian Marathon Championships have always been very popular among many countries, including China, Japan and South Korea. We expect at least 12 Asian countries or regions to participate next year," said Kwan. He added Hong Kong will be sending three men and three women to compete in the event, while the list of runners are yet to be finalized.