The crowd cheered wildly as swimming world record holders Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones arrived in town last week to promote Hong Kong's 2009 East Asian Games programme.
The Australian swimming legends provided some valuable tips for members of the Hong Kong national squad who took part in a 4x50-metre relay at the University of Hong Kong pool.
Jones said the Hong Kong swimmers needed to be faster in their takeover process.
'They have got to go faster, so that the next person can have a good takeoff,' Jones said.
Thorpe, a five-time gold medallist at the 2000 Sydney and 2004 Athens Olympics who also holds 11 world titles and 13 world records, announced his retirement in November last year. The 24-year-old revealed that he wants to accomplish many other things in life.
'I didn't take the decision to quit lightly,' he said.