Tennis players rejoice at renewed sense of love for sport during pandemic – ‘This gives us purpose’

After one of her first games of tennis in almost three months, Emily Chen said she appreciates the sport she loves even more. “It’s wonderful, oh my god,” said Chen, who has been playing the game for eight years. “Everyone is so happy to be back.” Chen was playing a doubles match with friends Xiao Wen-zheng, Sherry Ha and Naoko Matsumoto, along with coach Jason Sankey, a former Hong Kong Davis Cup player, at the Indian Recreation Club in Causeway Bay. She said playing tennis just makes her feel like a better person – “It gives me confidence.” Hong Kong’s tennis courts were one of the first sports to get the green light on February 4, along with golf as outdoor sports, after a prolonged fourth Covid-19 wave hit Hong Kong. The coronavirus has taken away some people’s sports, pastimes and recreational activities now for more than 150 days. Coming back, Xiao said it is part exercise, part staying mentally fit, and part rekindling friendships. Fitness fans get ‘addiction’ back but Hong Kong gyms fearful of fifth wave “It’s a network for us,” said Xiao, who has also been playing for eight years. “To help each other, to teach each other, to get together and play … it helps unite us. Usually I am alone, always alone, I am from China and I don’t have siblings to be around so here I have fun. That helps me get out and be social.” As gyms and sports and recreation venues reopened on Thursday, yet again, another round of relief and rejoice swept across the city. People were allowed to head back to their yoga classes, hit up their dance studios of choice or start playing their favourite sports once again. Sankey said the smiles on the faces of the people he coaches, young kids to senior citizens, is undeniable. He said he hopes the government understands just how important sport and recreation is to Hongkongers, who are in one of the hardest working and most stressful cities. Coaches like Sankey were hard-pressed, unable to work and only offered three rounds of subsidy relief (HK$7,500 twice and $5,000). He said through three lockdowns, he has seen a range of negative emotions come to the surface, not only for the players, but the coaches he has under his wing at Tennis Asia. “People seem to go through these phases,” said Sankey. “They miss it, then they start to think, ‘Well, maybe I don’t need to play it any more?’ So they start to accept inactivity. That’s pretty bad. “People are excited to come back. They are a little apprehensive, but I can see it in the kids, it takes 10 minutes, you can see kids who are socially awkward, after 10 minutes its like their lives have come back.” Hong Kong has about 200 public courts across the city, with about 100 more private venues. According to Tennis Asia, one of the city’s biggest private academies, there are at least 27,000 regular players. The World Health Organization recommends physical activity for people of all ages in helping fight the coronavirus. Hong Kong’s battle against Covid-19 and its mental and financial toll is starting to show. The city recorded its worst year on record in terms of GDP in 2020 and government spending has ballooned. Hongkongers went into the pandemic already as one of the most stressed-out cities in the world, and mental health hit a record low, according to a Mental Health Month organising committee. Hong Kong police shut down tennis ‘protest’ at Tamar Park Hong Kong Tennis Association president Philip Mok said the tennis community has strictly adhered to the government’s rules and regulations, as well as new industry standards for Covid-19 that were put in place to allow them to reopen, which includes groups no bigger than four, and regular tests for coaches. “It’s great to see tennis courts fully occupied once again. From what I can see, people are happier in general when they can pursue the sport of their choice and they are willing to practise strict safety measures in order not to jeopardise this privilege.” Players and coaches were so frustrated with the government’s lockdown, 50 of them headed to Tamar Park in January to stage a peaceful protest, which was shut down in minutes by a large police presence. Sankey said if a fifth wave hits Hong Kong, he is praying the government finds a way to make sure people can somehow continue playing the sports they love. Hong Kong’s gyms plead with government to reopen to save them “Being in a community, you can see people are radiating. People are coming up to me now, ‘Hey, how are you? It’s so good to see you again.’ I mean this is huge, so many people have been separated from this, around the world, and it is a lifestyle, it’s a part of their daily routines.” Ha, who has been playing for five years, said tennis is a massive part of her life. “It gives us purpose, we play hard and we work hard.”