The Hong Kong Paralympic Committee & Sports Association for the Physically Disabled (HKPC&SAPD) celebrated the second Hong Kong Paralympic Day on July 8 at the Hong Kong Sports Institute, which also coincided with the 90-days-to-go countdown for the Indonesia 2018 Asian Para Games this October.
The celebration, which attracted over 1,200 participants taking part in various para sports, was attended by International Paralympic Committee (IPC) CEO Mr. Xavier Gonzalez, Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) president Mr. Majid Rashed, The Hon Mrs. Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Chief Executive and Mr. Lau Kong-wah, Secretary for Home Affairs.
Korea Paralympic Committee president Mr. Lee Myung-ho, Mrs. Jenny Fung, HKPC&SAPD President, and Dr. James Lam, Chairman were among the other attendees.
The guests also took the opportunity to try-out and play boccia, badminton and table tennis with Ms. Amy Chan, former Hong Kong badminton representative, Ms. Ng On Yee, billiards sport athlete and para sports athletes.
Mr Rashed said: “I want to congratulate the Hong Kong NPC for staging this second Paralympic day. We are gearing up for the Indonesia 2018 Asian Para Games in October followed by the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics and Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics. So events such as this help to build the excitement and hopefully inspire the next generation of athletes. Good luck to everyone taking part – this should help the Paralympic Movement reach the next level.”
IPC CEO Gonzalez felt that events such as this are vital for raising the profile of the Paralympic Movement, Para sports and Para athletes, especially at a time when so many major Para sport events are taking place in Asia.
The Hon Mrs. Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, added: “The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has increased resources to support the development of Para sports.
“The estimated expenditure in 2018-19 is nearly USD 70 million. It is 50 per cent more than that of last financial year to support the local Para athletes preparing for and participating in international and national major events, and the organisation of major local sports events.”
