Start made on Olympic equestrian sites

Work on constructing equestrian facilities for the 2008 Olympics has started in Fanling, and the government will this week announce the launch of a company to organise the event.

It is understood the equestrian company was registered with the Company Registry on February 15. An office will be set up in Wan Chai and up to 80 full-time staff will be hired to prepare for the Games events. The company will operate until the end of 2008.

A government source said the Beijing Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (Bocog) was expected to inject between $300 million and $500 million for the company's operation. The Hong Kong Jockey Club is to spend another $800 million to construct the games venues in Sha Tin and Fanling.

It is understood that former secretary for home affairs Lam Woon-kwong will be appointed as the company's chief executive.

The company's board of directors will be chaired by Secretary for Home Affairs Patrick Ho Chi-ping, with the bureau's permanent secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong president Timothy Fok Tsun-ting as the vice-chairmen.

Other members include representatives of Bocog, the Hong Kong Equestrian Federation, the Jockey Club, the Hong Kong Sports Institute and the Hong Kong Golf Club.

The government source said their next target was to prepare for a trial run in August next year. Several dozen horses and riders will arrive in the city to test the cross-country course in Fanling.