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The 2017 Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards presentation ceremony was held at the Hong Kong Sports Institute (HKSI) today, unveiling a list of 175 awardees. The organiser, the Hong Kong Coaching Committee (HKCC), aims to recognise the dedication of coaches in nurturing Hong Kong athletes to pursue outstanding sporting results at both regional and international sporting arena, and their contribution in developing sports across the community and school levels in the past year.

In 2017, a record-high of 223 nominations were received to compete for honour in seven categories, namely Coach of the Year Awards, Distinguished Services Award for Coaching, Coach Education Award, Best Team Sport Coach Award, Coaching Excellence Awards, Community Coach Recognition Awards and School Coach Recognition Awards.

Mr Lau Kong-wah JP, Secretary for Home Affairs, Ms Rhoda Chan, Head of Charities Project (Grant Making – Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture) of The Hong Kong Jockey Club and Ms Vivien Lau BBS JP, Chairman of the Hong Kong Coaching Committee officiated at the Ceremony.

Ms Vivien Lau expressed her gratitude to the coaches in her welcoming speech. She said, “It was a fruitful year for Hong Kong sports, with new records and excellent results attained in various international competitions. While we cheered in appreciation for the achievement of athletes, applause should also be given to their coaches who have been nurturing them throughout the years. Salute to all the coaches and wish Hong Kong teams all the best at the coming Asian Games, Asian Para Games, and other important competitions.”

Ms Rhoda Chan praised the coaching team for the patience and encouragement they had given the athletes. “For many years, The Hong Kong Jockey Club has been supporting both the hardware and software development of the HKSI, and has also been supporting various projects to affirm the efforts of the athletes and coaches,” she said. “At the same time, the Club is supporting them in developing a 'dual career pathway’, so that they can devote themselves to sports careers. In 2016, the Club donated some HK$9.7 million to launch the Hong Kong Jockey Club Coach Education Programme, and these coaching awards are part of that programme, which is designed to further promote the professional development of elite coaches.”

The Coach of the Year Awards (COY) was one of the highlights of the presentation ceremony. The list of awardees concluded as follows: Wayne Griffiths (billiard sports) in the senior athletes, individual sport category; Chan Hui (table tennis for persons with intellectual disability) and William Edward Hoffman (tenpin bowling) in the senior athletes, team event category; Wang Chang-yong (fencing) and Lam Chi-pang (table tennis for persons with intellectual disability) in the junior athletes, individual sport category; while Leung Kan-fai (squash) in the junior athletes, team event category.

Coach Wayne Griffiths was awarded the COY title for the first time. Thanks to his effort, Ng On-yee clinched a number of snooker championships worldwide in 2017, including LITEtask WLBS World Festival of Women's Snooker, and IBSF World 6 Red and Team Snooker Championships. Under his leadership, the billiard sports team entered the quarter-final round at several international competitions. Coach Griffiths also led Lee Chun-wai to attain the 2^nd place at the 2017 IBSF World 6 Reds & Team Snooker Championships and the 5^th place at the IBSF World Snooker Championships 2017.

Coach Chan Hui and coach Lam Chi-pang are both veterans in coaching athletes at the Hong Kong Sports Association for Persons with Intellectual Disability. Under their guidance, the para table tennis team bagged 10 gold, 9 silver and 6 bronze at the INAS World Table Tennis Championships 2017. Such remarkable achievements brought coach Lam the second COY title while the debut honour for coach Chan.

Coach William Edward Hoffman, the former Head Tenpin Bowling Coach at the HKSI, led his charge to win a gold medal in the men's trios and a silver medal in the men's doubles at the 2017 World Bowling Championships. Co-operation and chemistry among the squad members were greatly built up under his leadership.

In recognition of his relentless effort in coaching the fencing team, coach Wang Chang-yong has been awarded the Coaching Excellence Awards for 14 times. This year, he made a step forward to claim his first COY title by nurturing Cheung Ka-long to excel at the World Junior & Cadet Fencing Championships and Asian Under-23 Fencing Championships last year.

Coach Leung Kan-fai was presented the COY title for the 5^th time since 2009. The squash team returned home with a bronze medal in the junior women's team at the WSF World Junior Squash Team Championships, a silver and a bronze medal respectively from the women’s team and the men’s team at the Asian Junior Squash Team Championships in 2017.

Distinguished Services Award for Coaching was acknowledged to para lawn bowls coach Adem Osman for his unremitting service in the sport for over 20 years and commitment in improving the athletes’ performance at the international level. In addition to caring for the all-round development of the athletes, coach Osman strives to instill the importance of sportsmanship and fair play in his team.

Coach Education Award went to volleyball coach Lam Chun-kwok, the head coach of the Hong Kong women’s senior volleyball team and the coaching instructor at the Volleyball Association of Hong Kong, China. Coach Lam has started his coaching career since 1993 and more than 600 coaches had received his guidance over the years. Being a solid supporter for coach accreditation programme, he has also facilitated the participation of around 400 coaches. He pledges to help develop a systematic training programme for more local volleyball teams.

Dragon boat coach Milan Krasny lifted his second Best Team Sport Coach Award by leading the team to win the 2^nd place at the 13^th IDBF Junior & U24 World Nations Championships.

A total of 99 coaches were awarded the Coaching Excellence Awards for leading athletes to achieve outstanding performance at the major international competitions in 2017, while 35 coaches received the Community Coach Recognition Awards to acknowledge their special contribution in the community for a period of not less than three consecutive years. In addition, 32 full-time teachers from local primary and secondary schools were presented the School Coach Recognition Awards.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club Coach Education Programme (HKJCCEP) is funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust with a donation of some HK$9.7 million since November 2015. HKJCCEP consists of three major components including the Jockey Club Elite Coaching Development Programmes; the Jockey Club Coaching Accreditation Programmes; and the Jockey Club Community Education, as well as Coach Recognition Programmes to further support the career development of coaches. The annual Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards falls into the third category which recognises coaches’ contribution to athlete training and development in Hong Kong.

The Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards is organised by the HKCC, a joint committee of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China and the HKSI, which was established in 1991 with the aims of formulating and implementing short-term and long-term strategies for the development of coach education and accreditation programmes in Hong Kong. Over the years, more than 89,000 participants have benefited from the Programme.

For the List of Recipients for the 2017 Jockey Club Hong Kong Coaching Awards, please click here.  For the past recipients, please click here.