Editorial | Hong Kong’s Oxfam Trailwalker event will hopefully return soon
- The decision to not give the green light to the Oxfam Trailwaker was surprising and disappointing considering the success of the Hong Kong Marathon. Such an event offers much-needed entertainment at a time when travel is not practical. It should be encouraged and facilitated
The staging of the Hong Kong Marathon on October 24 was a landmark in the city’s return to normal life amid the pandemic. The event attracted 18,500 runners. There was controversy over the wearing of political slogans, complaints about crowding at some points on the course and a higher number of injuries than usual. But the event was a success, the first of its kind since 2019.
It is, therefore, surprising and disappointing that the next major mass sporting event on the calendar, the Oxfam Trailwalker, will not take place. The organisers expressed their sadness after failing to get the green light from the government. The decision came just three weeks before the event was due to be held next month.
The race was cancelled in 2019 because of civil unrest and did not take place last year as a result of Covid-19. Competitors, who train hard, will be devastated by the latest decision. The justification for refusing permission was said to be that the event posed “a potential risk for the spread of the virus”. But that could be said of the marathon, too, and it was allowed to go ahead.
Trailwalker, a charity fundraising event since 1986, usually involves more than 4000 competitors running in teams of four. The course spans 100km along the MacLehose Trail from Sai Kung to Yuen Long. This time, the plan was to drastically reduce the number of teams. Runners would have needed to be fully vaccinated and to take a Covid test ahead of the race.
The government may have been concerned about the presence of runners and their supporters on the trail at the same time as regular hikers. The need to supply competitors with food might also have been a factor. But the organisers had offered to discourage the involvement of support teams and provide individually wrapped provisions. All to no avail.
Caution is needed when mass events return. But Trailwalker, which has raised more than HK$600 million for charity over the years, poses a low risk at a time when there is no community outbreak.
Sporting events such as Trailwalker offer much-needed entertainment at a time when travel is not practical. Trail running, if pursued responsibly, is good for the body and mind. It should be encouraged and facilitated. Trailwalker will, hopefully, return soon.
