‘Slip of the tongue’: weightlifting and powerlifting association apologises after chairwoman calls Hong Kong ‘small country’
- Association says chairwoman Josephine Ip’s remarks not intended to advocate Hong Kong independence, adding whole world knows city is part of China
- Lawmaker Adrian Pedro Ho describes what Ip said as ‘unacceptable’ especially after enactment of new domestic national security law
Hong Kong’s weightlifting and powerlifting association has apologised for creating “misunderstandings and disputes” after its chairwoman mistakenly called the city “a relatively small country”.
A spokeswoman for the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau on Monday also said the government was highly concerned, adding the Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China, had requested a report from the association over the matter.
Chairwoman Josephine Ip Wing-yuk of the Hong Kong, China Weightlifting and Powerlifting Association made the slip-up in a speech at the opening ceremony of the “Hong Kong Weightlifting Invitation 2024” on Sunday.
Lawmaker Adrian Pedro Ho King-hong of the New People’s Party uploaded Ip’s speech to social media shortly afterwards, saying such remarks on “Hong Kong independence” were “unacceptable”, especially after the enactment of the city’s new domestic national security law.
“I urge the government to seriously follow this up and ask the Olympic committee to suspend the membership of the Weightlifting and Powerlifting Association and fully investigate the incident,” he said.
In a statement issued on Saturday night, the association apologised for what it called “a slip of the tongue”.