A different track: running practice, and much more, for autistic Hongkongers
Ahead of race at Disneyland, amateur athletes at Kowloon Bay Park find weekly training offers a way past challenges of living with their condition
It’s a breezy October night and Sonia Ng takes her son, Hiroki Ng Ho-kei, to Kowloon Bay Sports Ground, shortly after dinner. It is 7.45pm and the 19-year-old is rushing his mother, making sure he isn’t late for his weekly running training, which starts in 15 minutes.
The boy was diagnosed at a young age with low-functioning autism, which causes a lack in social instincts and a struggle to recognise social cues, resulting in poor social interaction.
But from the looks of Hiroki, his behaviour is a far cry from other autistic patients.
“He has come a long way; he never used to be able to be in the same room as strangers, and has a tough time adapting to new environments,” the 51-year-old single mother says.
As it strikes 8pm, Hiroki runs cheerfully towards the stadium, ready to take to the field. Once out there, the teenager does his routine stretches, listening carefully to instructions and paying attention to his surroundings. Watching from the stands, the mother smiles.
