Asian Games 2023 volunteers sift through tens of thousands of rubbish bags and find 12-year-old Hong Kong chess athlete’s phone
- Liu Tian-yi was in need of a miracle when she misplaced mobile phone – which had been turned off – during the opening ceremony
- She tells Chinese state media the enthusiasm and desire to help by those involved made her ‘feel at home’
Goodwill and determination proved to be winning attributes at the Asian Games after hundreds of volunteers all focused their efforts on helping a young Hong Kong athlete locate her lost phone.
The 12-year-old Hong Kong chess player, Liu Tian-yi was in need of a miracle when she misplaced her mobile phone – which had been turned off – inside the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre during the opening ceremony.
Liu reported her phone missing, saying she last remembered using it at dinner in the tennis centre and then put it in a bag, which she thought she might have accidentally been thrown away.
Volunteers kicked into action and turned the 523,000 square metre stadium upside down, sifting through tens of thousands of rubbish bags and working around the clock to locate Liu’s phone.
The needle in a haystack job was accomplished, leading to the 19th Asian Games’ official X account to boast: “And it’s done in less than 24 hours!”
Liu told Chinese state media that the enthusiasm and desire to help by those involved made her “feel at home”.