HONG KONG, Asia’s World City, is boosting its sports appeal with a string of activities lined up for the first half of this year.
Most notable are the Hong Kong Marathon, the city’s largest outdoor event, followed by Hong Kong Masters, a show jumping event for the family from February 21 to 23, and the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens scheduled for March 30.
The Hong Kong Marathon, which will take place on February 16, grew from 1,000 competitors 18 years ago to 72,000 in 2013. It is expected to be even bigger this year, with a full marathon, a half marathon and a 10km run. The show jumping championship, which brings together the world’s top 25 riders, is the first five-star accredited competition on the equestrian calendar to take place in Asia since the Olympic Games in 2008. The Hong Kong Rugby Sevens has grown into one of the biggest rugby events on the international sporting calendar. Every March, teams from the world’s top rugby nations compete in 15-minute matches over a three-day carnival.
The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has been actively promoting the destination to Arab travellers. At a promotional event held in Dubai late last year, Peter Hoslin director of Europe and New Markets, said: “GCC is a key element from the Middle East for us. Our major focus is on the UAE and Saudi Arabia. We are also interested in Oman, Qatar as well as Bahrain. Turkey is a strong segment for us from the rest of the region.”
Hong Kong witnessed an increase of 13.6 per cent in tourism figures for the first half of 2013 from the global market, while the GCC alone showed an impressive 8.3 per cent growth. In particular, the UAE market showed the strongest growth at 20 per cent.