Standard Chartered Marathon founder Ben Hung wants Hong Kong to embrace iconic sporting event
Race founder calls on citizens to embrace an 'iconic' event amid attempts to establish it as one of the top street marathons in the world
With a marathon bursting at the seams and restrictions on road closures and opposition to route changes, only small improvements have been made for today's 19th edition of the event, including Hennessy Road being used for the finishing burst to Victoria Park.
But Hung believes the "tipping point" has been reached where the "pros" outweigh the "cons" and the marathon will eventually establish itself as an iconic street circuit - "the best in Asia and one of the best in the world".
This is something magical and I don't think people realise what an asset we have ...and whether we are leveraging it enough
"Hong Kong people can dictate to a great extent the future of the path it takes," he said. "But there is growing recognition and a growing part of the population want it to be bigger and better. When application quotas [for 73,000 spots] are filled in three to four hours that sends a powerful message.
"This is something magical and I don't think people realise what an asset we have - or we collectively have - and whether we are leveraging it enough.
"The government will be guided by the sentiment of Hong Kong. The government and police have done a lot, but more can be done. And I'm optimistic," said Hung, who was one of the event's creators 19 years ago.
He admitted there were still "tension points" where the marathon intruded on people's lives and was a "nuisance", but they were trying to educate everyone - especially "the little old lady who has to go shopping for groceries in Causeway Bay or TST" - to look at the event through a "different lens".
