Paris Olympics, Lionel Messi fail: Hong Kong’s best and worst sporting moments from 2024

No guessing which disaster was the city’s low point, but after a summer of success, which golden moment stands out from all the rest?

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Hong Kong’s impressive showing at the Paris Olympics provided undoubtedly one of the biggest sporting highlights of 2024. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 11:38am, 30 Dec 2024Updated: 10:52am, 1 Jan 2025

Over the past 12 months Hong Kong sport has delivered some memorable highs and, quite frankly, several unforgettable lows.

From the Olympic Games in Paris, to the various in-house events and the questionable presence, or not, of one Argentinian football mega star, it has been an eventful 2024.

So here is a look at our best and worst moments from the past year, starting with a golden couple of weeks in the French capital.

King Cheung

Cheung Ka-long celebrates after winning a second gold medal by defending his fencing title in Paris. Photo: Reuters

Given the success Hong Kong’s delegation enjoyed at the Summer Olympics and Paralympics, picking a top moment was never going to be easy, but fencer Cheung Ka-long’s successful defence of his foil crown in Paris, where he became the city’s first two-time gold medallist in the process, edged it.

And over several days of high drama, Cheung put his supporters at home and abroad through emotional turmoil. Having breezed through the early rounds on July 29, Cheung was on the brink of elimination in the quarter-finals, only to battle back to get the winning point against France’s Enzo Lefort.

He was in the same position in the final, but with umpire interventions denying both he and Italy’s Filippo Macchi the winning strike in a nerve-racking affair, it was Cheung who struck the decisive blow to win 15-14 and make history.

Golden girl

Vivian Kong poses with her gold medal in front of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Olympic Games. Photo: Xinhua