In view of the inaccurate media reports made on the Selection Mechanism of athletes participating in the 18th Asian Games, the Federation would add the following points to supplement the announcement on 23 August 2018:

1. The 18th Asian Games Selection Committee of the Federation (Committee) comprised of over ten representatives from various National Sports Associations (NSAs). Based upon a set of agreed selection criteria, the Committee reviewed the shortlist from individual NSAs and made the final decision. Apart from providing the agreed selection criteria (Criteria) to individual NSAs for their reference before nomination, the Criteria has also been published on the Federation’s website for public viewing.

2. All members of the Committee were required to submit written declarations for conflict of interest prior to the selection meeting. The declared members were also required to abstain in the meeting or discussion in their related sports items. Mr. Ronnie M.C. WONG, Hon Secretary General of the Federation and the Chairman of the Committee, abstained from the meeting when the Committee reviewed the shortlist of swimming athletes on 24 April 2018. Mr. Wong had not involved in the process of reviewing swimming athletes and voting.

3. In the Hong Kong Amateur Swimming Association (HKASA) submitted shortlist for the 18th Asian Games, Mr. KWOK Ka Fai and Mr. NG Yan Kin were nominated in two different events. Mr. KWOK was nominated for the 100m Breaststroke only while Mr. NG was nominated for 50m Breaststroke only. The Committee reviewed all shortlisted athletes’ personal best results based on the agreed Criteria. The personal best result of Mr. KWOK was at the 100m Breaststroke in the 2016 Asian Swimming Championship (ranked No. 12 out of 25 participants) which did not meet the Criteria. The personal best result of Mr. NG was at the 50m Breaststroke in the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) (ranked No. 12 out of 34 participants) and at the 4x100m Medley Relay (ranked No. 6 out of 13 teams) which also did not meet the Criteria. After deliberation, the Committee unanimously selected Mr. NG as participant to the Asian Games for his relatively good results in the AIMAG.

4. Mr. KWOK subsequently made a request for review to the Federation through HKASA. The Committee reviewed his ground for request. However, the request did not provide updated new results or new training plan to support his request. The Committee maintained the original decision that Mr. KWOK was not included to participate in the Asian Games. A written reply was sent to HKASA on 19 June 2018. In relation to Mr. NG’s participation in the 100m Breaststroke in the Asian Games, which has already been explained in the announcement of HKASA on 23 August 2018, it is considered unnecessary to repeat in this announcement.

5. It must be emphasized again, throughout the selection process, the Federation or the Committee did not contact individual athletes directly. All documents and results were communicated through their respective NSAs. Based on the principle of not commenting on individual case, the Federation has not made any disclosure of case details till this moment. The Federation wishes this incident would not affect all the athletes, including Mr. KWOK and Mr. NG, who have been striving hard for their dreams. We hope they can recollect their heart to fight for their dreams through a new phase of training.

Finally, the Federation wishes all NSAs, athletes, media and the public to continue their support to the sports development of Hong Kong, encourage more young people to join and let them continue to shine on the international sports arena.

Issued by: Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China
Date: 28 August 2018