Hong Kong bridge half marathon chiefs blame location for food, toilet, bus issues and apologise for finish-tape blunder
- No food, not enough drinks, long queues and scarce toilets among the complaints from runners after officials’ initial claim of ‘perfect execution’
- HKAAA offers ‘sincere apologies’ for finish line error and says some issues arose from the narrow area of bridge used and the need to hand it back quickly
Organisers of the Bank of China Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Half Marathon have apologised for a blunder at the finish line on Sunday, and attributed other problems emerging over its staging to the location and police requirements.
The Hong Kong Association of Athletics Affiliates (HKAAA) acknowledged that “officials mistakenly retrieved the finish tape” intended for women’s winner Sarah Chelangat from Uganda and “accidentally allowed” men’s runners to break it first.
“The male runner, representing Japan, somehow crossed the line some five seconds ahead of the women’s overall champion,” it said of an incident ridiculed on social media, expressing “sincere apologies to the affected athletes”.
Kwan Kee, the HKAAA chairman, said limited space on the bridge “raised difficulties”.
Organising committee chairman Simon Yeung Sai-mo had on Sunday touted the event’s “perfect execution” and awarded officials “100 marks”.
But frustrations vented by some of the 8,000 participants included a lack of food anywhere during and after the event, a shortage of water and absence of sports drinks, and delays in the bus service ferrying them to and from the bridge.
