Bun festival climbing champion vows to keep local grip on trophy

The defending champion of the bun-scrambling competition has vowed to keep the trophy in the hands of Cheung Chau residents.

Kwok Ka-ming said that islanders were deeply connected to the festival, which began as a way to pacify the spirits of the islanders who died in a plague in 1894.

'This was an activity for ... Cheung Chau residents only, but now this concept has changed,' said Mr Kwok, who snatched 51 buns in three minutes at last year's competition.

'For [non-Cheung-Chau residents] this might be just another climbing competition, but for us Cheung Chau locals, it means a lot. I feel that it is part of my roots.'

The 24-year-old firefighter will race 12 others, including four Cheung Chau locals, in the finals at midnight on Saturday. They will also be using bigger bags this year to stop the buns from falling out

The competition was banned in 1978 when a bamboo bun tower collapsed and injured 100 people. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department revived the contest last year, replacing the bamboo with a 15-metre steel tower decorated with 8,000 buns. Safety measures were imposed to prevent participants from falling off. But many of the islanders were upset by the changes to the contest, including opening it to people from around Hong Kong.