Speech by SCST at Hong Kong Football Festival 2025 Press Conference
Following is the speech by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law, at the Hong Kong Football Festival 2025 Press Conference today (March 31):
Miss Rachel Carroll (Managing Director of TEG Sport), Mr Pui Kwan-kay (President of the Football Association of Hong Kong, China), media friends, ladies and gentlemen,
Good afternoon. First of all, I hope you have recovered from the excitement, and I actually mean hangover, of Hong Kong Rugby Sevens already. And more importantly, I hope you are as excited as I am in joining this press conference to announce the big event this coming summer: Hong Kong Football Festival 2025 to be held in our new Kai Tak Sports Park, Kai Tak Stadium. Four top international football teams will be playing in two matches in the last week of July. And you heard the details from Carroll just now.
There is indeed no better way of concluding our Super March with the announcement of yet another set of mega sports events. While we may still be overwhelmed by the joy and atmosphere of the Hong Kong Sevens or are still savouring the series of arts and cultural offerings in March, Hong Kong is in fact all set to welcome Liverpool, AC Milan, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur to Hong Kong. I did promise you that the mega event calendar in Hong Kong will continue to be filled by highly anticipated events, and that I will be personally announcing our major international football matches with a big grin on my face, so here you go!
Hong Kong Football Festival 2025 represents so much more than two football matches. It is a celebration of Hong Kong and Asia's longstanding passion for football, one of the most powerful sports in captivating audiences from around the world.
Another milestone meaning for these two matches is of course that they will be the first international football club matches to be staged at our world-class new stadium at Kai Tak Sports Park.
My special thanks go to our special guests - the legendary players from all four teams. They have come all the way to share our excitement. I can already feel that the "football temperature" is rising in Hong Kong. And I am sure that the adrenaline of our football fans is pumping up fast.
Before I close, I would like to thank TEG Sport for bringing to us this wonderful football festival. Let's work together to make this event a great success! And I look forward to seeing you all at Kai Tak Stadium in end-July.
CAD search and rescue exercise strengthens collaboration and responsiveness
The Civil Aviation Department (CAD) successfully completed a joint short-range Aeronautical Search and Rescue exercise today (January 12) in the waters near Mong Tung Wan on the Chi Ma Wan Peninsula, Lantau Island.
The exercise involved eight government departments and one search and rescue unit, namely CAD, the Government Flying Service (GFS), the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF), the Fire Services Department (FSD), the Marine Department (MD), the Civil Aid Service, the Auxiliary Medical Service and the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO), and the Hong Kong Garrison of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (Garrison) respectively.
Today's exercise simulated a helicopter crashing into the sea near Mong Tung Wan on Lantau Island. With the concerted efforts of helicopters and vessels dispatched by the Garrison, the GFS, the HKPF, and the FSD, all three people on board were rescued. The exercise lasted one hour, mobilising around 100 personnel from the participating units.
A spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Department said, "In accordance with the recommendations of the International Civil Aviation Organization, CAD regularly organises Aeronautical Search and Rescue exercises to strengthen co-operation and co-ordination among relevant search and rescue units and promote technical exchanges. This is to ensure a rapid and effective response in the event of an emergency."
This Aeronautical Search and Rescue exercise is divided into two parts: a short-range search and rescue exercise conducted today in the waters near Mong Tung Wan on Lantau Island; and a long-range search and rescue exercise to be conducted tomorrow (January 13) in the South China Sea, approximately 50 nautical miles south of Hong Kong. CAD, together with the GFS, the MD, the Garrison, the Nanhai Rescue Bureau of the Ministry of Transport of the People's Republic of China, and the Guangdong Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, will jointly deploy fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and ships to conduct the search and rescue tasks. The entire long-range exercise is expected to be completed in around three hours.
CAD search and rescue exercise strengthens collaboration and responsiveness Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
CAD search and rescue exercise strengthens collaboration and responsiveness Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
CAD search and rescue exercise strengthens collaboration and responsiveness Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
CAD search and rescue exercise strengthens collaboration and responsiveness Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
CAD search and rescue exercise strengthens collaboration and responsiveness Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
