Badminton bosses plan to move Hong Kong Open to new Kai Tak Sports Park, target world tour upgrade in 2027
- Flagship event still third-tier Super 500 tournament for 2023-26 despite effort to raise level
- Officials hope moving to new facility in 2025 will help them compete with other cities on the Badminton World Tour
Badminton bosses plan to move the Hong Kong Open to new facilities at Kai Tak Sports Park once the development is finished, and hope it will convince officials to upgrade the flagship event to top-tier status on the world tour.
Last month, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) unveiled its calendar for next year through to 2026, and the city’s event was kept as a third-tier Super 500 tournament, which left organisers disappointed.
The Hong Kong Open has been held at the city’s Coliseum venue since 2011, but only 6,500 spectators can attend, and officials hope an upgrade to the new 10,000-seater indoor sports centre at Kai Tak will help elevate the tournament’s status.
“We have been trying to raise the level of our flagship event but the competition is really strong,” Tong Wai-lun, the Hong Kong Badminton Association’s chairman, said. “A lot of cities around the world are trying to use badminton to promote themselves and are willing to invest in the event with strong financial backing.
“For us, money is not a major concern as we can secure enough commercial sponsors to provide the required prize money and our organisation power is also second to none among our counterparts.