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Mike Chan

Hong Kong’s decades-old tennis facilities at Victoria Park will be redeveloped, the city’s leader said on Wednesday, a move that could open the way to holding bigger tournaments in the future.
Speaking during his annual Policy Address, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the plan was “to strengthen the promotion of ‘sports and mega-events’.”
At the moment, Hong Kong holds the rights to stage a WTA and an ATP tournament, both at the 250 level. The first of those is the Prudential Hong Kong Open in November, with the men’s event at the start of the year.
“We will explore the redevelopment of Victoria Park Centre Court and other ancillary facilities into an iconic all-weather, multi-purpose venue for holding larger-scale and higher-level sports events, as well as performance activities as required,” Lee said.
Opened in 1982, the 3,600-seat facility is only eligible to host the lowest tier of men’s and women’s professional tennis.

But the redevelopment plan is expected to more than double capacity, with local tennis bosses pushing for between eight thousand and nine thousand seats.
A government source said tennis was considered to have “high potential to develop as a sports industry, whether it’s public interest or local athlete performance”.
“The goal is to upgrade the court to be able to host at least an ATP 500 – which is a 7,000-seat venue, among other requirements,” the source added.
Hong Kong tennis chief Michael Cheng Ming-git called Victoria Park a “one of a kind” location, and said it represented “a very unique brand of Hong Kong as Asia’s World City”.
“Victoria Park is one of a kind on a global scale, given its heritage and its prime location in the heart of the city. It represents a very unique brand of Hong Kong as Asia’s World City,” the 56-year-old said.
“This decision today demonstrates Hong Kong has the conviction and vision to bid for credible world-class sporting events in Hong Kong,” the 56-year-old said.
Reconstruction was not expected to involve any reclamation of the city’s harbour, while nearby facilities such as the indoor swimming pool, basketball courts and football pitches, would not be affected, those with knowledge of the plans told the South China Morning Post.
The redevelopment would also turn existing facilities into a multi-purpose venue capable of hosting other sports events, and the owner of a Hong Kong basketball team backed the move.
Tony Chin To, owner of Hong Kong Bulls, hailed the forward-looking planning in Lee’s speech, and said he hoped to eventually make the new space “our team’s home court for future Chinese Basketball Association competitions”.
A government source said the goal was to begin the reconstruction of Victoria Park Centre Court in “four to five years”.
Cheng said there would be an implementation and transition plan for the WTA and ATP Tour events already in place for when the work began.
“HKCTA has a plan to use the Hong Kong Stadium as an interim measure, with a view to ensuring professional tennis tour events will continue without disruption,” he said. “We are discussing with relevant parties of the government and with the professional tour.
“We are all actively exploring to make sure there is an implementation and transition plan in place in an orderly manner, and make sure we have a plan in place while the new tennis stadium is under construction.”
Hong Kong Sports Institute, the city’s training agent of elite athletes, also supported the government’s initiative.
“Upgrading Victoria Park Tennis Court into an international-standard centre venue will support the hosting of larger-scale and higher-level sports events in Hong Kong, giving elite athletes more opportunities to train and compete in major events on home ground where they can fully showcase their talents,” Tang King-shing, the HKSI chairman, said.
Separately, the city’s leader in his five-year plan also aims to raise the tourism industry’s value added from HK$86.2 billion in 2024 to HK$126 billion by 2030, an increase of about 40 to 50 per cent.
It also targets increasing the proportion of non-mainland visitors among overnight travellers to 40 per cent by the end of the decade.
Among the more immediate tourism measures unveiled alongside the plan in the Policy Address on Wednesday were a series of “+ Tourism” initiatives aimed at combining travel with mega-events, finance, industrial brands, ecological conservation and heritage, while also promoting film tourism, yacht tourism, city renewal and homestay accommodation on outlying islands.
“The Hong Kong Tourism Board will offer visitors an immersive experience of Hong Kong’s unique urban landscape and lifestyle, weaving together classic Hong Kong films, district characteristics and local culture,” Lee said.
A government source explained it would be a campaign, which the board aimed to launch within the year on its website, that would promote iconic filming locations around the city.
“The programme will also look at businesses around these landmarks and recommend what visitors can shop and eat nearby,” the source said.


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Sport

Hong Kong

Tennis

Basketball

The decades-old facilities in Causeway Bay are to be redeveloped into an all-weather, multi-purpose venue in the years to come


The decades-old facilities in Causeway Bay are to be redeveloped into an all-weather, multi-purpose venue in the years to come.


Hong Kong Tennis Association (HKTA)

Hong Kong tennis bosses hail Victoria Park revamp plans, eye WTA, ATP 500 tournaments

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The decades-old facilities in Causeway Bay are to be redeveloped into an all-weather, multi-purpose venue in the years to come

The decades-old facilities in Causeway Bay are to be redeveloped into an all-weather, multi-purpose venue in the years to come