Operation Santa Claus: squash players prove to be top guns at raising money for Hong Kong charities
- Wing Ding Squash Charity Tournament, which marked its 25th year, raised more than HK$447,000 for Operation Santa Claus
- This year, 182 player ranging in age from eight to 81 joined in the fun
What do dinosaurs, Hawaiian hula skirt dancers and Top Gun pilots have in common?
They – well, players dressed like them – battled it out on the squash courts of the Hong Kong Football Club in Happy Valley on November 18 to raise money for Operation Santa Claus (OSC).
Now into its 25th year, the Wing Ding Squash Charity Tournament raised more than HK$447,000 (US$57,200) for OSC, an annual fundraising campaign organised by the South China Morning Post and public broadcaster RTHK to help local charities. Last year, the tournament raised HK$413,000.
“I think it [OSC] makes it very easy; 100 per cent of what we raise goes to Operation Santa Claus and we know the 15 charities [projects] they fund are worthy causes,” said Stephen Gollop, chairman of the Football Club’s squash section charity subcommittee, the tournament organiser.
It was founded in 1998 in memory of Yuen Kam-wing, a physically impaired and much-loved staff member at the Hong Kong Squash Centre who died that year. It ran without a charity partnership until it joined forces with OSC in 2004.
The “Ding” in the name comes from the sound the ball makes when it hits the metal strip at the bottom of the court.
This year, 14 teams with 13 members each – a total of 182 players ranging in age from eight years to 81 – took part. They had to wear fancy outfits in the colour assigned in a draw.
