bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Celine Sun

Many spectators leave Sha Tin event early
They braved a predawn start - some arriving in Sha Tin at midnight - all hoping to revel in Hong Kong's first taste of the Olympic experience.
Yet by the end of the first dressage  session in the eventing competition yesterday morning, the initial euphoria stirred in many by the spectacular opening ceremony in Beijing had ebbed to boredom, and most spectators left the venue early.
By 8am,  and with two hours still to go, four shuttle buses provided by the Equestrian Company had picked up about 400 people from the competition venue and returned them to University  station.
As the temperatures rose, more of the nearly 10,400  spectators at the morning session began to leave. Almost two-thirds of the spectator stands were empty by 9.50am.
Many  had arrived at around 4am to get  through the intense security.
Some fell  asleep in their seats, perhaps aided by the gentle music playing over loudspeakers.
Wong Man-yee, who came with her family, said they were 'deeply bored' by what they saw.
'The horses walked from one side of the arena  to the other  and then  back again.  I thought they were  just going through the warm-up exercises, but the commentator said the [round]  was over,' said Ms Wong, who is in her twenties.
Although she and her family listened to the  commentary, they still found it  hard to enjoy  the  dressage movements.
'To be honest, I don't think equestrianism is an appealing sport visually. I really doubt Hong Kong people will be interested in it,' Ms Wong said as she was  leaving.
Another spectator leaving early was Raymond Lam, who said he fell asleep  soon after the event began.
'I thought the event would be  like a carnival. But it was so boring,' he said.
But the middle-aged man said he was not disappointed. 'At least it has been good  to take part in this Olympics,' he said.
Of the early leavers, Roger Peterson from New York probably had the least idea about dressage.
'My wife bought the tickets and dragged me here. I was totally surprised when the competition started because  I had expected to see horse racing,' said Mr Peterson, 44. 'I have to say that this is the most boring thing I've ever seen in my life.'
But not everybody was unprepared. Ben Wong Ka-wai   said he did his  research by browsing the  International Equestrian Federation website. 'But the rules are too complicated,' he said. 'It's impossible  to recognise  every subtle move and gesture made by  the horse and rider.'
The brochure given to  spectators at the entrance yesterday said only that 'dressage is conducted in several rounds, and each horse and rider combination performs a set routine of dressage movements in the  arena'.
The mood was the same for the second session  in the evening.
Thomas Wong Tak-chiu was unimpressed and cited the  ban on  cheering. Mr Wong had bought 15 tickets for family and friends - but most did not turn up after hearing on the radio how boring the dressage was in the morning. There were no buyers for the tickets at University  station.
'I sat for 10 minutes and left,' Mr Wong  said.
The Equestrian Company's chief executive,  Lam Woon-kwong,  agreed that equestrianism might seem strange to Hongkongers.
'I know that not every spectator understood the content of the event, but they come here to get a feel of the Olympic Games.
'It's a learning process for some spectators  as this is not a very popular sport, but they can [still] feel  the soul and elegance of the game ... The second and third days will be more  interesting.'
Spectators can listen to radio commentary on the equestrian events in English (FM 103.2MHz) and in Cantonese (FM 106.7MHz), at the  Olympic venue  with a radio or mobile phone.
Spectators were keen, however, on  shopping and photography - with hundreds braving the sun to queue for pictures next to the competition area with the fuwa mascots and to get to the souvenir shop.
'Yeah, it is true that we had to wait  quite a while [to get into the shop], but this is where you can feel the Olympic atmosphere. It's worth it,' a spectator surnamed Wong said.



Dressage more bore than draw for some