[For Immediate Release]
3,000 Swimmers Create a Splash in the New World Harbour Race 2023
Crowd Flocking to TST Promenade to Capture the Debuting Harbour Playpark with FTLife
(Hong Kong, 12 November 2023) New World Harbour Race 2023, the annual sports extravaganza title sponsored by New World Development Company Limited (“New World Development”) and organised by Hong Kong China Swimming Association (“HKGSA”), was successfully held in Victoria Harbour today. About 3,000 swimmers started from the Golden Bauhinia Square Public Pier in Wan Chai and completed the 1-km distance swim across the harbour to the finish at the Avenue of Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui.
The Organiser joined hands with FTLife, Premium Sponsor of the New World Harbour Race, to inject new elements to the race by debuting the first-ever harbourside playpark, the “FTLife Presents: #PowerUp on the Harbour”, allowing citizens to get close to our beloved Victoria Harbour in a whole new aspect, swarming Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade with people, celebrating the theme of “Empower Happy Waves for All” together.
The gun-firing ceremony was officiated by Mr. Eric Chan, Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr. Kevin Yeung, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism of HKSAR, Dr. Adrian Cheng, Chief Executive Officer of New World Development Company Limited and the Executive Directors of NWD Mr. Eric Ma and Mr. Nam Hoi Sitt, Hon. Kenneth Fok, Member of Legislative Council, Mr. King Shing Tang, Chairman of Hong Kong Sports Institute and Mr. John West, Member of Open Water Swimming Technical Committee of World Aquatics, joined Mr. Ronnie Wong, President of HKGSA, marking the official opening of the New World Harbour Race at 7:30am in the morning.
Not only this year’s race includes the Racing and Leisure groups, it also sees the return of the International Category, in which top swimmers from all over the world are competing in the New World Harbour Race. Swimmers from the Greater Bay Area are also participating in the Leisure group. The Race has also been recognised as one of the “M” Mark mega sports event this year by the Major Sports Events Committee.
The spotlight was on the Racing Group of around 200 swimmers that took to the water first. After a morning of intense competition, Japan swimmers Kaiki Furuhata and Hanao Kato clocked 14’43.9 and 15’46.3 respectively, triumphing in the Men’s and the Women’s International Racing Group respectively. Local young swimmer Li Edmil Kong Fei was declared the champion in the “FTLife New World Springboard Championship”, with a time of 24’32.2. Full results of the race will be uploaded to the New World Harbour Race website (https://www.hkharbourrace.com).
NWD: Injecting Innovative Elements into Mega Sports Events
“As a much regarded annual sports extravaganza, the New World Harbour Race provides swimmers with a unique opportunity to take a competitive dip in the Harbour,” said President of HKGSA Mr Ronnie Wong. “We would like to express our gratitude to the relevant government departments and organisations for their cooperation and to New World Development for their unremitting support, without which we would not be able to make the New World Harbour Race a success. It is also a great honour that the Race is reckoned as a “M” Mark event, and we anticipate to make the Race an annual gathering of international swimmers.”
Mr Nam Hoi Sitt, Executive Director of New World Development, said, “The New World Harbour Race is a sports event of the city, and also an incredible time for people to celebrate around the Harbour. NWD injects innovative elements into the iconic Hong Kong sporting event, and we are proud to debut the first-ever harbour playpark in Hong Kong, allowing the citizens to experience the beauty of the Victoria Harbour in an unique way. By hosting large-scale events along the globally acclaimed Victoria Harbour, we also anticipate to enhance Hong Kong’s reputation as the city of mega events.”
Harbour Playpark a big success, an “Instagrammable” attraction to all
Meanwhile, the organiser debuted the first-ever harbourside playpark namely the “FTLife Presents: #PowerUp on the Harbour”, celebrating the theme of “Empower Happy Waves for All”. The Harbour Playpark design embraced the concept of New World Harbour Race, the spectacular Victoria Harbour scenery, and happiness, and includes six attractions that are suitable for all. The “Harbour on the Roll”, “Harbour Bounce”, “Blissful #PowerUp Floaties Pool” allow participants to enjoy themselves on the world-famous Victoria Harbour; while the “Infinity Swings” and the New World Harbour Race Mega Buoy allowing participants to take “Instagrammable” pictures with the unique and stunning Harbour view as a background. Citizens and tourists also flocked to the Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade, gathering outside of the playpark to capture the 10-meter-long “The Wondering Swimmer”.
Mr Man Kit Ip, Chief Executive Officer of FTLife, said, “We are delighted to be the Premium Sponsor of this year’s New World Harbour Race, which is a perfect extension of one of our four life pillars ─ ‘PowerUp’ being our flagship campaign this year. It’s gratifying to see the enthusiastic support from young families for our title sponsored ‘New World Springboard Championship’ and ‘#PowerUp on the Harbour’ Playpark in Hong Kong. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with New World Development in the future, consistently creating unique and unforgettable ‘PowerUp’ experiences for every family.”
-Ends-
High-res photos are available: https://bit.ly/NWHR2023_Raceday
Photo Caption:
Photo 1
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Mr. Eric Chan, Chief Secretary for Administration(5th from right), Mr. Kevin Yeung, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism of HKSAR(5th from left), Dr. Adrian Cheng, CEO of New World Development(Centre) and the Executive Directors of NWD Mr. Eric Ma(4th from left) and Mr. Nam Hoi Sitt(3rd from left), Hon. Kenneth Fok, Member of Legislative Council(3rd from right), Mr. King Shing Tang, Chairman of Hong Kong Sports Institute(2nd from right) and Mr. John West, Member of Open Water Swimming Technical Committee of World Aquatics(1st from right), joined Mr. Ronnie Wong, President of HKGSA(4th from right), officiated the gun-firing ceremony at 7:30am in the morning and mark the official opening of the New World Harbour Race. |
Photo 2
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Kaiki Furuhata (Centre) from Japan clocked 14’43.9, triumphing in the Men’s International Racing Group. Cho Cheng Chi (3rd from right) and Park Jaehun (3rd from left) from Chinese Taipei and Korea came 2nd and 3rd respectively. |
Photo 3
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Hanano Kato from Japan clocked 15’46.3 winning in the Women’s International Racing Group. Liew Li Shan Chantal (3rd from right) from Singapore and Nip Tsz Yin (3rd from left) from Hong Kong claimed the 2nd and 3rd place respectively. |
Photo 4
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Local young swimmer Li Edmil Kong Fei (centre) brought home gold in the “FTLife New World Springboard Championship”, with a time of 24’32.2. Yip Wai Fat (right) and Mau Cho Hong (left) claimed the 1st Runner Up and the 2nd Runner Up respectively. |
Photo 5
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“FTLife Presents: #PowerUp on the Harbour” was attracting citizens and tourists to capture precious moments both inside and outside the playpark. |
Photo 6
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“FTLife Presents: #PowerUp on the Harbour includes six attractions that are suitable for all; the “Harbour on the Roll”, “Harbour Bounce”, “Blissful #PowerUp Floaties Pool” allow participants to enjoy themselves on the world-famous Victoria Harbour. |
Photo 7
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The “Infinity Swings” allowing participants to take “Instagrammable” pictures with the unique and stunning Harbour view as a background. |
Photo 8
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Citizens and tourists flocked to the Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade, gathering outside of the playpark to capture the 10-meter-long “The Wondering Swimmer”, the exclusive mascot of the Victoria Harbour in the event. |
Photo 9
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With the return of the International Category, the New World Harbour Race sees about 3,000 participants swimming across the harbour. |
New World Harbour Race 2023 Winners List
| Position | Name | Time | Nationality |
| Champion | Kaiki FURUHATA | 14’43.9 | Japan |
| 1st Runner Up | CHO Cheng Chi | 14’44.0 | Chinese Taipei |
| 2nd Runner Up | PARK Jaehun | 14’52.9 | Korea |
| 4th Place | SIN Chin Ting Keith | 15’05.2 | Hong Kong, China |
| 5th Place | YU Cheng Yuan | 16’01.2 | Chinese Taipei |
| Position | Name | Time | Nationality |
| Champion | Hanano KATO | 15’46.3 | Japan |
| 1st Runner Up | LIEW Li Shan Chanal | 15’47.9 | Singapore |
| 2nd Runner Up | NIP Tsz Yin | 15’53.7 | Hong Kong, China |
| 4th Place | TENG Yu Wen | 16’14.2 | Chinese Taipei |
| 5th Place | JIAN Wei Ling | 17’51.4 | Chinese Taipei |
| Position | Name | Time |
| Champion | LI Edmil Kong Fei | 24’32.2 |
| 1st Runner Up | YIP Wai Fat | 25’04.6 |
| 2nd Runner Up | MAU Cho Hong | 27’14.3 |
About Hong Kong China Swimming Association
Hong Kong China Swimming Association (“HKGSA”) was founded in early 1951 by the President, Mr. A. de O. Sales, and it took part for the first time in the Olympic Games in Helsinki 1952 with four swimmers. It was subsequently registered under the Societies Ordinance on 28th April 1960. It is a member of the World Aquatics, Asia Aquatics and Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF & OC). It is the sole governing body of swimming sports in Hong Kong covering all swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming, open water swimming and masters swimming competitions and activities here.
In the past 70 years, the Association has been promoting and developing swimming sports, thus raising the standard of swimming, nurturing elite swimmers and providing training to athletes, officials, judges and coaches in Hong Kong through organizing different competitions, training courses and relevant teaching activities. The Association now has over 130 affiliated clubs with over 10,000 registered athletes, offering all properly accredited persons the opportunity to represent Hong Kong in a wide range of competitions and meetings here and abroad.
About New World Development
Founded in 1970, New World Development Company Limited (“The Group”, Hong Kong stock code: 0017) was publicly listed in Hong Kong in 1972 and is a constituent stock of the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index. A premium brand infused with a unique personality best defined by The Artisanal Movement, New World Group’s core business areas include property development, property investment, road, construction and insurance. Its operations in Greater China, especially the Greater Bay Area, had a total asset value of approximately HK$616.5 billion as at 30 June 2023. The Group has an effective interest of approximately 61% in NWS Holdings Limited (Hong Kong stock code: 0659) and approximately 75% in New World Department Store China Limited (Hong Kong stock code: 0825) and wholly owns New World China Land Limited.
(This press release is issued by ActionHouse International on behalf of the Hong Kong China Swimming Association and New World Development Company Limited.)
For further information, please contact:
ActionHouse International Limited
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Kelvin Choi Tel: 3102 8058 / 6104 9099 Email: kchoi@actionhouseintl.com |
Carmen So Tel: 3102 8058 / 6026 0147 Email: cso@actionhouseintl.com |