Hong Kong Olympic short-track speed skater Sidney Chu shared his delight and relief after learning of the government’s plans to build its first international standard ice skating rink. Following Team Hong Kong’s last competition at the Beijing Games , chef de mission Karl Kwok Chi-leung revealed plans for a rink in Pak Shek, Tai Po while also boasting the Hong Kong Sports Federation and Olympic Committee’s “communication with relevant ice and snow project leaders” in China. Though there is no fixed timeline for construction or completion, Chu, who finished 24th in the men’s 500m event at the Capital Indoor Stadium last week, is keen to help prepare a grass roots-level conveyor belt in a city that has traditionally overlooked ice- or snow-based sports. “I was like ‘damn, what has been coming out of my mouth like a broken record for the past 10 years, and 20 years coming out of everybody else’s, is somewhat coming true’,” said the 22-year-old upon hearing the news from National Olympic Committee president Timothy Fok Tsun-ting on Wednesday. “There were always rumours before, but never an actual government person who would really speak about this. It’s just great.” While certain factions of the community will be raising their eyebrows at the prospect of a rink in suburban New Territories, Chu explained how symbolic it would be. “A lot of people on the internet used to comment, ‘Hong Kong is a place with no snow or ice, so why should the government or people invest in winter sports?’ That’s actually a pretty reasonable question,” Chu said. “But my Olympic experience really gave me an idea how to answer that. It really shows the resilience and willingness to fight and push through regardless of the conditions of the Hong Kong people,” he added, drawing similarities to the legendary Jamaican bob-sled team . “If you think of Jamaican athletes, I’m sure at least half the people would mention their bob-sled team and what that represented for their country. That it wasn’t on the [winter sports] map, but they were still able to make things work despite their conditions. It’s testament to their power and fighting spirit. “That’s why winter sports is meaningful to Hong Kong – that old Hong Kong fighting spirit. It’s definitely worth the investment, to show other countries that despite the difficulties, we are still able to produce world-class winter athletes.” Chu added that he felt a “responsibility” to help lead the way given that he was Hong Kong’s sole ice-based sports entrant in this Olympic cycle. But the passion to develop local skaters runs deep in the city – even before Chu was born. Christy Ren, who alongside Cordia Tsoi Po-yee became the first athletes to represent Hong Kong at a Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City in 2002, has been openly dreaming of a standardised ice rink and government support since the 1999 Asian Winter Games. View this post on Instagram A post shared by CHRISTY REN (@christy_moments) “Should Hong Kong have an international standard ice rink of its own for training purposes, of course that would be a leap forward,” said Ren some two decades on from her memorable Olympic debut aged 18. “Skaters could actually reach the speeds they need to perform at and it would make training much more accessible. “It’s great to see three young athletes represent Hong Kong at the Winter Olympics this year, which I believe has contributed in building awareness and knowledge of winter sports in the city, as well as show the great potential in its development.” Virtually all of Hong Kong’s Olympic speedskaters in between Ren and Chu have had to travel across the border for better training facilities ahead of international events. Ren acknowledged she would not have reached her historic career peaks otherwise. “We have always been grateful to China for sharing their facilities, experience and expertise,” said Ren, who sent messages of support for Hong Kong’s latest Winter Olympians last month. “Indeed, it would be beneficial to have a more strengthened cooperation, and possibly also structure programmes and exchanges with Hong Kong and China in the future. “At the same time, to truly build up winter sports and raise the standard, I think there also needs to be a much more holistic approach to the way of training, including off-ice training, agility, strength and conditioning, training coaches, et cetera. “Not only for those reaching professional level – it needs to start earlier from building the foundation. I also believe more can be done to promote and boost accessibility to the public to learn certain sports such as short-track speedskating, as only figure skating is available for recreational rinks.” As for the seemingly arbitrary Pak Shek Kok Sports Centre location, Chu explained it actually made sense from an elite-athlete perspective. “I’m not picky – it could have been in Yuen Long or anywhere,” Chu said, laughing. “But Tai Po is close to the HKSI, so I think the main goal for the government’s standard ice rink is to give the elite athletes the best training – most skating athletes are based around there. Inspired by the Winter Olympics? You can skate, ski and curl in Hong Kong “It’s wonderful that the government is supporting – finally the Hong Kong team will be able to train in Hong Kong. It’s much better than going to Dongguan every weekend . “It’s really a source of hope and opportunity for the young athletes training right now – they can still have their lives in Hong Kong while training at elite level. I’ll support it in whatever way I can.” Ren also identified a potential snowball effect once the correct procedures are in place to facilitate the sport. “There’s also a commercial consideration for the rinks. If venues can be sorted, I believe there can be more outreach programmes and cooperations with schools,” Ren said, crediting the HKSI for “greatly enhancing” elite athlete-level training compared to her days. “If well-known Olympians and athletes from China can come more often to share experiences, do exhibitions, educate about the sport, that could help promotion, too.” After years of using his fledgling platform to raise awareness about lack of resources, facilities and the like, Chu has emerged as the unofficial face of the city’s next ice-based sports development phase. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sidney Chu | 朱 定 文 (@schu1) “It’s surreal because I [might not] need to keep saying we need international standard rinks any more,” he said. “I’m grateful to have made the little impact I did – if I did – on this, to wrap up all the work Christy and everybody else did. “It’s been a long time coming, but it’s the work of everybody, not just me. To be given the opportunity at the Beijing Olympics was wonderful, and to know I had an impact on finally getting an ice rink in Hong Kong is almost a bigger joy.”