Organizers hope the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon can still take place on Nov. 20, although it would be with a reduced number of participants compared to last year.
An RTHK report on Friday quoted the Hong Kong Association of Athletics Affiliates’ executive director Dennis Ng Yu-ho as saying that, after consulting with authorities, the association decided to limit the number of runners to 25,000 after taking into consideration factors such as the time period of road closures and the need to reduce the number of people starting each race.
He also said that the organizers started discussions with the government in February and a proposal was submitted to the authorities in mid-June.
Ng said the government, after considering the Covid-19 situation in the past month, suggested that organizers reduce the number of participants from last year, which was about 37,000.
The number of staff is expected to remain similar to last year, when it was capped at 4,000, Ng said.
He also mentioned that the race route for the full marathon and half marathon would be the same as before, starting at Tsim Sha Tsui and ending at Victoria Park in Tin Hau. As for the 10-kilometer race, it will start at the Island Eastern Corridor and end at Victoria Park, which is different from last year when participants started at the Kowloon entrance of the Western Harbour Crossing.
RTHK quoted the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau as saying on Thursday that it had received the association’s amended proposal.
But because the event involves nearly 30,000 participants and staff, the government needs to review the relevant Covid-19 prevention measures and logistical arrangements in detail, it said.
The bureau added it is consulting relevant departments and processing applications as soon as possible.
