Column | How mass participation sports events ‘exploded’ in Hong Kong – and the challenges city faces to stay at the forefront
Trail running in particular has seen a huge boom and there are many other thriving events in the city – but the rest of Asia is fast catching up
In these cooler months, there’s at least one, often several, mass participation events in Hong Kong every weekend; no wonder Dan Parr says “mass participation – everything from 2km fun runs to ultra-endurance runs – has absolutely exploded in the city.”
He should know: the managing director of sports marketing firm Fast Track Asia is also one of the city’s leading ultra-runners, whose team was second in last November’s 100km Trailwalker.
Parr was speaking at a recent Business of Sports Network event where the panel – Parr, Action Asia editor Steve White, Andes Leung of non-profit Run Our City and Abhinav Gupta of Active Network, an event management tech company – discussed how Hong Kong came to the forefront of mass participation in Asia and the challenges it faces to stay there.
“People are looking for experience over material possessions, it’s not about what you own, it’s what you do,” said Parr. “The growth of the industry has been massive and Hong Kong has built a reputation as a destination and venue for these events, which I think is terrific for the region.”
Gupta pointed to rising incomes, lifestyle choices and social media as factors in the boom. “People who love to travel can combine events with exotic destinations, or if they’re passionate about causes they do events to raise money,” he said. “And people like to look good doing them – everything’s about Facebook.”
