National Games bowling to strike home in HK
The chairwoman of the Hong Kong, China Tenpin Bowling Congress said on Tuesday that Hong Kong's staging of the mass-participation sport at the upcoming 15th National Games will spark interest.
Bowling is the only mass-participation sport of the nine to be staged in the SAR during the Games that it will co-host with Guangdong and Macau.
The finals for the sport will be staged at the Kai Tak Sports Park Bowling Centre between August 22 and 24 ahead of the Games to be held in November.
Speaking on an RTHK radio programme, Vivien Lau said local bowlers rarely get to play against representatives from the provinces and other special administrative regions.
"When we hold local competitions, bowlers have to be members of our congress," she said.
"But now all who are interested can form groups to join the event.
"This will definitely enhance public understanding of as well as interest in bowling.
"In particular, this event is a nationwide competition, so for the spectators, it's a very special competition."
Even though SAR bowlers enjoy home advantage in the Games, Lau said the style of releasing the ball will be one of the challenges as most of them are hookers while many of their mainland counterparts are spinners.
Lee Wing-yan, a SAR bowler who has retired from the sport for years, said she immediately signed up when she found out that Hong Kong is hosting the mass participation event.
"It is the first time that the National Games has the bowling mass participation event, and it's held in Hong Kong," she said.
"So I and my teammates thought that given this rare opportunity, as we do not know if bowling will still be part of the National Games in the future, we hope to seize this opportunity to join the mega event," she told the same show.
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