‘I want to meet the top brass in Beijing’: Samaranch’s demand before signing off on Hong Kong’s sporting future

The prospect of IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch queueing up for a China visa was awkward for Hong Kong officials.

In the years, leading up to the handover, Samaranch had been supportive but just days before the big moment he had one unconditional demand – he wanted to meet China’s leaders ... not the sports leaders but the men who ruled the country.

Timothy Fok Chun-ting, president of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, said that presented two problems – getting a China visa at such notice and ensuring that, once he arrived in Beijing, Samaranch would be able to meet a top official.

After a flurry of exchanges between Hong Kong and the mainland, Samaranch’s wishes were fulfilled. Fok was coy as to whom Samaranch met but he assured “it was a top official”.

As for the visa, he hinted that the Spaniard bypassed all border controls and it is understood that Fok’s father, the late Henry Fok Ying-tung, who was a former top official at Fifa, helped ease his path.