Skateboarding body accused of changing rules, timekeeping irregularities at Hong Kong Games
- World Skate rules require three 45-second runs, with timers used, but Hong Kong event gave some skaters less time
- Government department says skaters were consulted about late changes, but coach says, ‘Some were only 10 years old. How can they make such a decision?’
The integrity of skateboarding events at the ongoing Hong Kong Games has been questioned after organisers were accused of changing the rules and providing inaccurate timekeeping, leaving some competitors at a disadvantage.
Rules set by World Skate, the sport’s governing body, had either not been properly implemented by the organisers or were altered at the last minute, according to local skateboarding coach Reeve Tsui Yin-lung.
The Games, held biennially, are contested by Hong Kong’s 18 districts and consist of eight competition sports along with skateboarding, breaking and sport climbing as demonstration disciplines.
The ninth edition, which runs until June 9, was classified as a major sports event by the Hong Kong government. Its website stated it would follow rules and judging criteria set by world governing bodies.
“There’s no timer, there’s not even a countdown or a stopwatch,” said Tsui, who had two skaters competing at the Games. “Some had 42 seconds, some 38 seconds. And they were cut by the MC.”
According to World Skate rules, skaters have three 45-second runs to perform tricks, and timers must be used.
The street skateboarding was held at Lai Chi Kok Park Skatepark on May 11, with the park competition taking place the next day at Hong Kong Velodrome Skatepark.
Tsui said his skater James Lam Shing-hoi and three others were given less than 45 seconds in the street competition. RTHK32’s broadcast showed Lam being given less than 40 seconds. “Skaters will usually save their best tricks for the end, so it’s really not fair,” Tsui said.
He said that before the park event – in which his skater finished first in the boys’ under-16 category – members of the Hong Kong, China Federation of Roller Sports and Skateboarding (HKCFRS&S) changed a rule.
“Five minutes before the start, the judges talked to the athletes, many aged under 18 and some without their parents, and asked if it was OK to change to four 40-second runs,” Tsui said. “Some were only 10 years old. How can they make such a decision?”
Tsui, a commentator when skateboarding made its Olympic debut in Tokyo in 2021, added that organisers declared only the overall scores rather than the points from each run, again breaching World Skate rules.
Tsui said this further called into question the integrity of the competition because it was not clear how skaters had accumulated their final points tally.
The government’s Leisure and Cultural Services Department, which helps to coordinate the Games, said the federation, “operating through a fair, open and transparent mechanism, reserves the right to adjust the rules” according to “the skill level of participants and prevailing circumstances”.
“Although there was no LED display timer at the competition venues, the duration of each participant’s run was timed.”
Rule changes were made only after “an athletes’ meeting was convened to ensure that all adjustments were acknowledged”, it said. “All participants across the two-day event agreed to the results. Consequently, there will be no replay.”
The HKCFRS&S did not respond to requests for comment.
