Hong Kong gets boost for 2020 Olympic men’s road cycling race with ‘unexpected’ qualifying spot
- As Japan are hosts of the Tokyo Games, their spot has been given to the Hong Kong team
- Hong Kong have competed in every Olympic Games men’s road race since Athens 2004
An unexpected change in the qualifying quota for the Tokyo 2020 men’s cycling road race will enable Hong Kong to maintain a good participation rate at the Olympic Games.
The road race qualification process closed last week, with the top 50 countries qualifying. Hong Kong ranked 51st, while Japan finished in the top 50. As hosts they would be given two slots anyway but since they also obtain one through the rankings, they have to surrender the quota to the highest ranked national Olympic committee that is not yet qualified, which is Hong Kong.
The local men’s cycling road race team have a long history of competing at the Games and have rode a streak of not missing the Olympics since the 2004 Athens Games.
“This is good news as we have spent most of our efforts on track cycling and this is something unexpected,” said Hong Kong Cycling Association executive director Alex Wong Chi-yu. “As the quota is for Hong Kong and not an individual rider, we have to discuss with our coaching team before making a decision on the rider and preparing a specific training programme for the road competition in Tokyo.”
Wong said they might have to wait for more results in the track qualification process before making a decision as there are a number of cyclists who could contend for the Olympic berth.