Jockey Club celebrates its long-standing support for higher education at annual JC Scholarships and Fellowships Award Presentation Ceremony

The Hong Kong Jockey Club today (28 April) celebrated Hong Kong’s next generation of leaders and innovators at its Scholarships and Fellowships Award Presentation Ceremony and High Table Dinner. In total 110 scholarships and 10 STEM fellowships were presented and 45 graduating JC Scholars recognised. The annual event, which also saw the inauguration of five Endowed Professorships, underlined the Club’s long standing commitment to education and talent development.

Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao (front row, 5th right); Club Deputy Chairman Lester Huang (front row, 5th left); Club Stewards Nicolas Hunsworth (front row, 4th left), Dr Henry Chan (front row, 3rd right), Anita Fung(front row, 3rd left), Jackson Woo (front row,2nd right), Philip Lo (front row, 2nd left), Rimsky Yuen (front row, 1st right) and John Lo (1st left); Club Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges (front row, 4th right); Club Executive Director, Sports Business, Casper Stylsvig (back row, 1st right);Club Executive Director, Charities and Community, Dr Gabriel Leung (back row, 3rd left);Club Executive Director, People and Organisational Development, Dr Lake Wang (backrow, 2nd left); Club Executive Director, Security, Integrity and Information Security,Moray Taylor-Smith (back row, 3rd right); Club Executive Director, Legal andCompliance, James Bidlake (back row, 2nd right); and Club Chief Transformation Officer,Serena Lin (back row, 1st left) attended the dinner to witness and share the joy of the awardees.

The ceremony was hosted by Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao, who was joined by keynote speaker Professor Anita Elberse, Lincoln Filene Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School. Witnessing the occasion were Club Stewards, the Club’s CEO and members of the Club’s management team, together with representatives of participating tertiary institutions. Also sharing the joy were family members and friends of award recipients.

Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao delivers a speech at The Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarships and Fellowships Award Presentation Ceremony and High Table Dinner.

Speaking at the ceremony, Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao said that the Club well understands that people are Hong Kong’s most precious resource. That is why the Club has long invested in human capital and education, to propel the city’s economic development and sustain the prosperity of our nation.

Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao (front row, centre) with recipients of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Chairman’s Scholarship.

In her keynote speech, Professor Anita Elberse reflected on her research into the world’s most accomplished sports and entertainment organisations and emphasised that success is not left to chance, but built on placing people at the centre, setting the highest standards and learning continuously – even in times of success. She encouraged scholars, fellows and professors to pursue excellence with discipline, trust those they work with, and lead in ways that uplift others when it matters most.

Keynote speaker Professor Anita Elberse congratulates awardees at The Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarships and Fellowships Award Presentation Ceremony and High Table Dinner.

Launched in 1998, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarships were established to nurture compassionate, socially minded leaders for the betterment of society. Over the years, the programme has expanded to encompass vocational education, undergraduates from the Chinese Mainland and overseas studying in Hong Kong, and students who have overcome significant adversity. A new music and dance scholarship has also been introduced for young talent pursuing professional studies in music and dance at leading institutions outside Hong Kong. To date, over HK$1.25 billion1 has been approved, benefiting more than 1,200 outstanding young people.

Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao (front row, centre) with The Hong Kong Jockey Club Striding On Scholarship awardees.

Club Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges (front row, centre) with graduating JC Scholars.

JC Scholars have continued to make meaningful contributions to society. Over the past year, Striding On Scholars won a number of medals in national and international para table-tennis competitions. Winnie Pang, recipient of a Striding On Scholarship this year, was born with congenital cerebral palsy affecting her right limbs. Despite the challenges, she has demonstrated remarkable discipline in balancing her studies with elite sports training. She represented HKSAR at the 12th National Games for Persons with Disabilities which took place in December last year, where she won one gold and two silver medals in table tennis.

Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao (centre) with JC Scholars Sunny Wong (2nd right), Winnie Pang (1st left), Samantha Yeung (1st right) and JC STEM Early Career Research Fellow Dr Jeff Lam (2nd left).

Striding On Scholars have achieved outstanding results at national and international para table-tennis competitions. Among them is Winnie Pang (left), who has also received cash awards under the Hong Kong Jockey Club Athlete Incentive Awards Scheme in recognition of her outstanding performance.

JC Scholar Sunny Wong (2nd left) and JC Scholar Winnie Pang (1st right) at a JC Scholar volunteer event.

To cultivate a strong pipeline of innovation and technology talent, the Club established the JC STEM Early Career Research Fellowship for Translation and Application in 2024. The Fellowship provides comprehensive support and unique opportunities for early-career researchers to advance research translation, expand professional networks and create social impact.

Deputy Chairman Lester Huang (front row, centre) with recipients of the JC STEM Early Career Research Fellowship for Translation and Application.

Dr Jeff Lam is one of this year’s JC STEM Early Career Research Fellows. After completing his PhD at the University of Cambridge, he chose to return to Hong Kong to research Alzheimer’s disease among the Chinese population. Though East Asians who carry APOE4, the strongest genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, face a higher risk of developing the disease, Asians, particularly Chinese population, are currently underrepresented in existing studies. He aspires to help fill this critical research gap by generating findings more relevant to Asian communities.

Club Chief Executive Officer Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges (centre) with JC Scholars Sunny Wong (3rd right), Winnie Pang (1st right), and Samantha Yeung (2nd right); JC STEM Early Career Research Fellow Dr Jeff Lam (1st left) and graduating JC Scholars Rex Cheuk (3rd left) and Natalie Mak (2nd left).

JC STEM Early Career Research Fellow Dr Jeff Lam conducts research at the JC STEM Lab of Neurobiology and Therapeutics of Alzheimer’s Disease.

The ceremony also marked the first induction of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Endowed Professorships, reflecting the Club’s holistic investment in higher education. The Endowed Professorships aim to advance research in areas of global health and sustainability, benefitting communities in Hong Kong and beyond.

Deputy Chairman Lester Huang (centre) with recipients of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Endowed Professorships.

The Club’s support for The Hong Kong Jockey Club Scholarships, Fellowships and Endowed Professorships, like all its charity and community donations, is made possible by its unique integrated business model through which racing and responsible sports wagering generate substantial tax contributions, charity support and employment opportunities for Hong Kong.

Pictured with JC Scholars, JC STEM Early Career Research Fellows and The Hong Kong Jockey Club Endowed Professors are Club Chairman The Hon Martin Liao (front row, 7thleft); keynote speaker Professor Anita Elberse, Lincoln Filene Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School (front row, 7th right); members of the Club’s Board of Stewards; Club management members and representatives of participating tertiary institutions.

The Institute of Philanthropy (IoP) is proud to serve as the exclusive sponsor of “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West”exhibition, which opened today at the Hong Kong Museum of Art. The exhibition brings together 106 masterpieces and artefacts from The Palace Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Palace of Versailles and the Hong Kong Museum of Art. Previously staged at The Palace Museum in Beijing in 2025 under the title “Rejoicing in Woods and Springs: A Journey through Garden Cultures in China and the Wider World”, also exclusively sponsored by IoP, the exhibition’s arrival in Hong Kong underscores IoP’s commitment to promoting Chinese culture and values and fostering international cultural exchange.

Guests tour the “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” exhibition.

The exhibition celebrates the beauty and cultural significance of gardens across civilisations. From the grand gardens of Emperor Qianlong and King Louis XIV to the artistry of Claude Monet, Zhang Daqian and Wen Zhengming, visitors can discover how gardens have long been spaces of creativity and leisure.

Guests tour the “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” exhibition.

Officiating guests at the opening ceremony included Rosanna Law, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism of the HKSAR Government; Wang Yuegong, Deputy Director of The Palace Museum; Ann Kung, Deputy Chairman of IoP and Trustee of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust; Dr Wang Tao, Pritzker Chair of Arts of Asia, Executive Director of initiatives in Asia of Art Institute of Chicago; Professor Desmond Hui, Chairman of the Art Sub-committee of the Museum Advisory Committee; Eve Tam, Acting Director of Leisure and Cultural Services; and Dr Maria Mok, Museum Director of the Hong Kong Museum of Art.

Officiating guests at the opening ceremony included Rosanna Law, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism of the HKSAR Government; Wang Yuegong, Deputy Director of The Palace Museum; Ann Kung, Deputy Chairman of IoP and Trustee of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust; Dr Wang Tao, Pritzker Chair of Arts of Asia, Executive Director of initiatives in Asia of Art Institute of Chicago; Professor Desmond Hui, Chairman of the Art Sub-committee of the Museum Advisory Committee; Eve Tam, Acting Director of Leisure and Cultural Services; and Dr Maria Mok, Museum Director of the Hong Kong Museum of Art.

Rosanna Law, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism of the HKSAR Government, said that this touring exhibition, which began at The Palace Museum in 2025 and arrived in Hong Kong today, connects regional culture of the East and West through historical gardens. The HKMoA, as the grand finale, will exclusively feature a selection of art treasures. The exhibition not only fully showcase the distinctive features of gardens from East and West and the rich cultural heritage from different regions, but also highlights Hong Kong’s vital role as a window for mutual exchange and learning between Chinese and Western civilisations. She added that the country advocates “shaping tourism with cultural activities and promoting culture through tourism”. Culture and tourism have always been highly complemented with each other. With Labour Day Golden Week approaching, she believes the exhibition would attract local art lovers and tourists, as well as boost consumption in the surrounding area. She extended her appreciation to The Hong Kong Jockey Club for its full support, and to the Institute of Philanthropy for its sponsorship, which together enabled the exwhibition to be successfully staged.

Guests tour the “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” exhibition.

Wang Yuegong, Deputy Director of The Palace Museum, said that Chinese gardens evoke the grandeur of mountains, rivers, and the natural world, all within a small space and in pursuit of the ideal. Through this exhibition series, the Palace Museum hopes to foster open, cross‑disciplinary dialogue and collaboration, and to engage all sectors of society in exploring the question of ideal living.

Ann Kung, Deputy Chairman of IoP and Trustee of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, said that the enduring legacy of Chinese garden art echoes the profound cultural heritage of The Palace Museum. Through this dialogue across time and cultures, she hoped more members of the public could experience the beauty of gardens from the East and West, deepen their understanding of the nation's history and culture, and carry forward Chinese cultural heritage, thereby enhancing cultural confidence and social cohesion.

Ann Kung, Deputy Chairman of IoP and Trustee of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony of the “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” exhibition.

“Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” is an important part of a five-year collaboration under a Memorandum of Co-operation entitled “Promotion of Chinese Culture and Arts Tech Talent Development in the Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong” signed between The Palace Museum and IoP. It aims to foster cultural exchange between the Chinese Mainland and Hong Kong and to nurture aspiring arts tech talent. The exhibition will offer guided tours for schools, charitable organisations and non profit-making organisations.

Guests tour the “Blooming: The Art of Gardens in East and West” exhibition.