incentive for a team gold medal at this year’s Tokyo Olympics

Hong Kong teams have been offered a

a big increase from the HK$3 million incentive at the 2016 Olympics

A gold medal winner in individual events will bank

Hong Kong has only ever won gold once with Lee Lai-shan claiming gold at

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

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Andrew McNicol

Patrick Blennerhassett

Tokyo Olympics: Siobhan Haughey, the Hong Kong Olympic star who lived up to the hype – and more

Hong Kong‘s Olympic silver medallist Haughey Siobhan after the Women’s 200m Freestyle Final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Photo: DPA

Siobhan Haughey in match nine of the 2020 International Swimming League in Budapest.

University of Michigan swimmers Jamie Yeung Zhen-mei and Siobhan Haughey with the NCAA championships third-place trophy in 2020. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong swimmer Jamie Yeung Zhen-mei (R) celebrates with her women's medley relay team members after qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Victoria Park swimming pool in May. Photo: Handout

Siobhan Haughey at the 2014 Youth Olympics.

Swimmer Siobhan Haughey will take part in all three individual events in Tokyo including the 50 metre, 100 metre and 200 metre, all in freestyle, at a press conference. Photo: Chan Kin-wa

Hong Kong's Haughey Siobhan Bernadette competes in a heat for the women's 200m freestyle swimming event during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre in Tokyo on July 26, 2021. (Photo by François-Xavier MARIT / AFP)

Hong Kong freestyle record-holder Siobhan Haughey competing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Photo: Xinhua

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Now one of the world’s best freestyle specialists, Haughey’s showing at the Tokyo Olympics is proof that Hongkongers are capable of reaching the top.


Andrew Cesare Richardson

Chinese swimmers’ doping allegations: what drug was involved, what has Wada said, and what might happen next

Chinese swimmers failed doping tests ahead of Tokyo Olympics. Photo: DPA

The 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for banned substance TMZ. Photo: AP

China

The revelation 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug before the Tokyo Olympics has sparked a row over who knew, when they knew and what happens next.


Explainer

Mark Agnew

Why are some shoes banned in running? Vienna City Marathon follows strict IAAF rules on sole thickness

Ethiopia's Derara Hurisa celebrates winning the Vienna City Marathon before he is disqualified for non-regulation shoes. Photo: AFP

epa07914832 A view of pacemakers wearing pink shoes after the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in Vienna, Austria, 12 October 2019. Kenyan marathon world record holder Eliud Kipchoge attempted on the day to beat his own record becoming the first person to run a marathon distance under two hours, recording a time of 1 hour 59 minutes 40 seconds at the event. EPA-EFE/CHRISTIAN BRUNA EDITORIAL USE ONLY

Ethiopia's Derara Hurisa reaches the finish during the 38th edition of the Vienna City Marathon in Vienna, Austria, on September 12, 2021. - According to media reports, Hurisa has been disqualified for using non compliant shoes. (Photo by HANS PUNZ / APA / AFP) / Austria OUT

Outdoor

Trail Running

Following the disqualification of Derara Hurisa at the Vienna City Marathon, many are wondering what was the issue with his shoes.


Elizabeth Kerr

Have equestrian sports always been posh? From Queen Elizabeth to The Rolling Stones, A-listers and high rollers just can’t get enough horseplay

Gregory Wathelet of Belgium, during the show jumping team final at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games: one of the equestrian sports that are elite in nature. Photo: Xinhua

Germany’s Isabell Werth and Jessica von Bredow-Werndl, and Britain’s Charlotte Dujardin, on the dressage winners’ podium at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Photo: AFP

Splendour and Gold, ridden by Umberto Rispoli, on its way to winning a class 4 race over 1,600m at Sha Tin, Hong Kong, in March 2019. Photo: SCMP

Jessica von Bredow-Werndl of Germany on her horse TSF Dalera in the individual dressage at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on July 28, 2021. Photo: Reuters

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth arrives for the Derby at Epsom racecourse, southern England at the start of a four-day Diamond Jubilee celebration to mark the 60th anniversary of her accession to the throne in June 2012. Photo: AP Photo

Magazines

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With patrons like Queen Elizabeth, Alex Ferguson and Steven Spielberg, sports such as dressage, show jumping, polo and horse racing take exceptionally deep pockets – but how did this lofty reputation begin?


Tokyo Olympics: Siobhan Haughey reflects on physical and mental sacrifices in Tokyo and why she was ‘so glad’ to race with teammates despite injury

Hong Kong silver medallist swimmer Siobhan Haughey and other Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games athletes on a bus parade in Hong Kong in August. Photo: EPA

The 23-year-old recalls swimming the team relay with an injured hip and overcoming more than 30-hours-a-week training and feelings of isolation – ‘that’s what athletes are like’.


Julian Ryall

Tokyo schoolchildren will attend Paralympics despite surging Covid-19 cases overwhelming hospitals

The number of new infections has shown little signing of slowing in Tokyo and nationwide, placing an increased strain on health care systems. Photo: AFP

20 August 2021, Japan, Tokyo: A tugboat moves a Paralympic rings installed for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games at Odaiba Marine Park. The Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics will start on 24 August and will run through until 5 September. Photo: -/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

20 August 2021, Japan, Tokyo: Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike holds a torch during a Flare Gathering Event for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Torch Relay at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) building. The Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympics will start on 24 August and will run through until 5 September. Photo: Rodrigo Reyes Marin/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

This Week in Asia

People

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News

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Health & Medicine

Covid-19

The burden on the city’s health care system this week led to the death of a baby born prematurely to a woman who was isolating at home due to a shortage of hospital beds.


Tokyo Paralympics: Hong Kong fans should treat competing athletes equally and embrace any unfamiliar sports, advises committee chief

The Hong Kong delegation for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games at the Hong Kong Sports Institute in Fo Tan in August. Photo: Chan Kin-wa

Rio Paralympic Games medalists (clockwise from left) Leung Yuk-wing, Justine Ng, Yu Chui-yee, Tang Wai-lok and Chan Yui-chong arrive Hong Kong Airport. 21SEP16 SCMP / K. Y. Cheng

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor presents the HKSAR flag to the Chef de Mission of the Hong Kong, China Delegation to the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, Wu Siu-ling, in the Government House. 12AUG21. SCMP / May Tse

Ho Yuen-kei, Team Hong Kong Boccia Paralympic athlete, poses for photography at Hong Kong Sports Institute in Sha Tin. 18JAN19 SCMP / Sam Tsang

Bowler Leung Yuk-wing (centre) beat Slovakia's Samuel Andrewjcik (left) 4-3 in the gold medal match at the Rio Paralympic Games. Right side is Thailand’s Pornchok Larpyen. Photo / Courtesy of the Hong Kong Paralympic Committee

‘Treat them as sportspeople – it doesn’t matter if they are competing with legs or without,’ says Hong Kong Paralympic Committee general secretary Martin Lam.


Jonathan White

How much money do Hong Kong’s Paralympians win for a medal? How does it compare to what’s rewarded to Olympic medallists?

Gold medals for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics being manufactured at the Japan Mint in Osaka. Photo: Kyodo

(L-R) Wong Ka-man, Tang Wai-lok, Au Kai-lun, Lee Chun-sang, Leung Shu-hang, Yeung Chi-ka pose for a photo with medals as they returned to Hong Kong at the airport. 11SEP12

Olympic gold medal winners pocket HK$5 million as part of scheme while Para athletes get HK$800,000 for solo golds.


Tokyo 2020 Paralympics: who are the most successful Para athletes of all time?

Paralympic swimmer Jessica Long holds up a gold medal as she poses for a portrait during the 2012 US Olympic Team Media Summit. Long is competing in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Photo: Reuters

File photo taken July 24, 2021, shows a second Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic cauldron set up near the Dream Bridge linking Tokyo's Ariake and Odaiba waterfront areas. People are barred from accessing the cauldron during the Olympics and Paralympics with the capital under a COVID-19 state of emergency. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

US swimmer Trischa Zorn is far and away the most successful Paralympian in history while Jessica Long is the only one of the most-decorated Para athletes who will compete in Tokyo.


Reuters

Tokyo Olympics: Peta cites cruelty to horses in call for IOC to remove equestrian events from Games

Tokyo Olympics competitor Annika Schleu of Germany with horse Saint Boy in the riding portion of the women's individual modern pentathlon. Photo: Xinhua

‘Olympic Games showcase human athletes, not the ability to terrify and injure horses’, says animal rights organisation’s president, after horse is whipped and punched at Tokyo 2020.


Tokyo Olympics: Siobhan Haughey hopes double silver helps Hongkongers ‘stay united’ through ‘all the ups and downs’

Siobhan Haughey wants to take her two medals and show them to everyone in Hong Kong. Photo: AFP

A man waves the Hong Kong flag in a shopping mall while celebrating as others look on in Hong Kong on July 30, 2021, after Siobhan Haughey won a silver medal in the women’s 100m freestyle at the Tokyo Olympics. (Photo by ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP)

The 23-year-old says she wants to share her medals with Hongkongers so they ‘can touch them, feel them, take photos with them and be inspired by them’.


SCMP Sport

Tokyo Olympics: Tiffany Chan Tsz-ching reveals she contracted Covid-19 ahead of Games, finishes strong in final round

Hong Kong’s Tiffany Chan Tsz-ching says she has learned more lessons after competing in her second Olympics. Photo: Reuters

Hong Kong golfer Tiffany Chan Tsz-ching stands under an umbrella on the fourth tee during in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games women's individual at the Kasumigaseki Country Club in Kawagoe in Japan in August. Photo: Getty Images

Golf

The LPGA Tour player hopes to stand on top of the Olympic podium in future just like Hong Kong’s five medal winners after making adjustments to finish in tie for 50th.


Ayurveda

Indian traditional medicine in the 21st century


Iconic Asian food

Asia's biggest YouTube stars

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Lifestyles of the rich and famous

How the rich and famous spend their money


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The Keto Diet

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What are Asia's most iconic historic brands?


LGBTQ in China

A marginalised community fights for acceptance


Japanese Cinema

Anime, yakuza, J-horror: the world of Japanese movies


Erica Jean

Meet Emma McKeon: Cody Simpson’s girlfriend is a superstar swimmer and Australia’s most decorated Olympian who worked hard to win her medals – and she can thank her career for her relationship too

Emma McKeon and Cody Simpson attend an Omega event in Paris, in August. Photo: @emmamckeon/Instagram

Emma McKeon attends an event in August with her boyfriend Cody Simpson. Photo: @emmamckeon/Instagram

Emma McKeon poses by a diving platform. Photo: @emmamckeon/Instagram

A childhood photo of Emma McKeon at the 12 Apostles in Victoria, Australia. Photo: @emmamckeon/Instagram

Emma McKeon in the pool in June 2023 while training for the World Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. Photo: @emmamckeon/Instagram

Emma McKeon enjoying a celebratory dinner at Paris’ Plaza Athénée after the 2024 Games. Photo: @emmamckeon/Instagram

In May, Emma McKeon celebrated her 30th birthday with boyfriend Cody Simpson. Photo: @emmamckeon/Instagram

Entertainment

McKeon and Simpson found love in 2022 while training for the Commonwealth Games; he failed to make the cut for the 2024 Olympics, but supported McKeon as she competed in her 3rd Games


Vivian Au

Hong Kong museum to showcase Olympic medals from local, mainland Chinese athletes

The medals are part of an exhibition celebrating the country’s achievements. Photo: Elson Li

The exhibition series will be held at the Hong Kong Museum of History and the Hong Kong Science Museum. Photo: Elson Li

Politics

Society

Display at Museum of History part of exhibition marking anniversary of country’s establishment, with Science Museum to also host exhibits.


Ambrose Li

Sammy Heung

Jess Ma

Chinese Olympians show fun side while offering Hongkongers words of advice on never giving up

A short voyage on a Star Ferry vessel was among Friday’s  activities for the mainland Olympians. Photo: Sam Tsang

Gymnasts Zou Jingyuan (left) and Liu Yang belt out a tune at the gala show. Photo: Eugene Lee

The Olympians test their strength by pulling a truck at the Fire and Ambulance Services Academy. Photo: Dickson Lee

Chief Executive John Lee delivers opening remarks at the gala. Photo: Eugene Lee

Team members greet the audience. Photo: Eugene Lee

Delegation members visit The Peak. Photo: Dickson Lee

Diver Quan Hongchan (centre) crosses the harbour with teammates. Photo: Edmond So

Athletes take part in a wide range of activities on second day of trip and are welcomed by loud cheers from fans waiting in sweltering heat,


Winston Mok

East Asia’s Olympics results are a testament to a changing world

Women’s +81kg weightlifting gold medallist Wenwen Li (centre) of China celebrates on the podium with silver medallist Park Hye-jeong (left) of South Korea and bronze medallist Emily Campbell of Britain at the South Paris Arena in Paris on August 11. Photo: Reuters

Opinion

World Opinion

Asia Opinion

Paris Olympics 2024

While ostensibly a showcase of athletic prowess, the Olympics reveal deeper socioeconomic dynamics at play globally.


Column

The View