Hong Kong athletes delivered an impressive performance at the 15th National Games on Sunday, November 16, securing two gold medals, one silver, and one bronze across swimming, cycling, mixed relay, and fencing events. These achievements highlight the city's growing prowess in competitive sports and bring the team's total gold medal count to seven.
In swimming, Ian Ho Yen-tou made history by winning gold in the men's 50-meter freestyle, setting a new Hong Kong record of 21.71 seconds. This victory marks Ho as the first male swimmer from Hong Kong to claim gold at the National Games. Qualifying second for the final, Ho faced stiff competition, including Paris Olympics gold medalist Pan Zhanle in the men's 100m freestyle. Starting from lane 5, Ho posted the second-fastest reaction time and led much of the race, finishing 0.46 seconds ahead of silver medalist Chen Hao from Liaoning. For his outstanding achievement, Ho will receive HK$750,000 under the Jockey Club Athlete Incentive Awards Scheme, sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club to support elite athletes through the Hong Kong Sports Institute.
Hong Kong's cyclists also celebrated a gold medal in the women's Madison event, with Ceci Lee Sze-wing and Chloe Leung Wing-yee dominating the competition. The duo accumulated 45 points over 120 laps in the velodrome, outperforming 12 other teams by scoring in nine of the 12 sprints. This tactical relay race awards points for sprints every 10 laps, with bonus points for lapping the field. Sichuan and Beijing claimed silver and bronze, respectively. The win represents Hong Kong's sixth gold at the Games, and Lee and Leung will be awarded HK$1.5 million through the Jockey Club Athlete Incentive Awards Scheme in recognition of their excellence.
In triathlon, the Hong Kong team earned a silver medal in the mixed relay, finishing in 1 hour, 24 minutes, and 16 seconds. The event involved two men and two women, each completing a 0.3km swim, 6.6km bike ride, and 1.8km run along scenic routes by Victoria Harbour, including landmarks like Golden Bauhinia Square, the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, and the Hong Kong Observation Wheel. Cade Wright started strongly, followed by Robin Elg, who maintained the lead. Bailee Brown held position in the third leg despite being overtaken, and anchor Oscar Coggins—fresh off a bronze in the men's individual triathlon the previous day—secured second place, just 11 seconds behind gold medalists Shandong. China Public Security Sports Association took bronze. Wright expressed delight at exceeding their top-three goal, while Coggins praised the team's medal-contending ability against strong rivals like Shandong.
Fencer Edgar Cheung Ka-long, an Olympic gold medalist, added a bronze in the men's individual foil. After a semifinal defeat to Fujian's Xu Jie, Cheung dominated the bronze-medal bout against Zeng Zhaoran, building a 7-2 lead early and winning 15-2. Teammate Ryan Choi Chun-yin, Hong Kong's first fencing world champion, exited in the quarterfinals after losing to Xu. Choi reflected on the match as a learning opportunity, vowing to improve.
These successes underscore Hong Kong's athletic talent on the national stage, with athletes set to receive substantial incentives to further their careers.