Hong Kong Half Marathon in Penny’s Bay awaits final government approval – with 10 days to go
- After string of sporting cancellations, organisers hope to get green light – ironically in a location that gained notoriety for its government quarantine centre
- They are confident that halving entrant numbers each day, an altered route and not having food on the course will allow it to proceed
Organisers of the Hong Kong Half Marathon Challenge hope to stage their race next week – if they can get final approval from the government.
The race is the latest sporting competition to seek the Hong Kong government’s blessing to proceed after a string of cancelled events.
With only 10 days to go, organisers have yet to receive official notification that their plans are not deemed a Covid-19 risk – ironically for a race taking place in Penny’s Bay, which has gained notoriety as the location of government quarantine facilities.
They hope to receive approval by Friday. To help to satisfy government requirements – including the need to restrict the number of participants to 500 at a time – the one-day event has been split in half, and spread over two days.
Originally scheduled for October 2, the “challenge” race, primarily for elite runners, will still be on that day, but the rest will run the previous day, a week on Saturday. The route has been altered from a 7km loop to a 3km one around Inspiration Lake Recreation Centre.