【明報專訊】HONG KONG ATHLETES competing in the Paris Paralympic Games have pulled off stellar performances. John Loung, Ho Yuen-kei and Cheung Yuen have won gold and silver medals respectively in boccia events. Together with the two previous medals won in swimming, Hong Kong athletes had won two golds, two silvers and one bronze as of around one o'clock this morning (3 September). We wish Hong Kong athletes a continuation of such outstanding performances in the remaining competitions.
The Paris Paralympics opened last Wednesday with the participation of over 180 countries and regions. 23 athletes have been fielded by Hong Kong to compete in eight sporting events this year. Over the past several decades, the Paralympic Games have been independent of the Olympic Games and are actually managed by a different organisation, even though they are held immediately after the Olympic Games. The Paralympic Games are organised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). The first Summer Paralympic Games was held in 1960. Later, the IPC and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) reached a cooperation agreement, hence the current arrangement of the two games being staged back to back.
Hong Kong has participated in the Paralympics since 1972. As of the last competition, Hong Kong had won a total of 40 golds, 39 silvers and 52 bronzes. Such results, though impressive, have not garnered much attention in the past. Since the last competition, the government has purchased the broadcasting rights for the Olympic and Paralympic Games altogether, giving the public the first opportunity to witness Hong Kong Paralympic athletes competing in all events.
Take a look back at Hong Kong athletes' performances in the past three Paralympic Games. They won three gold medals, three silver medals and six bronze medals in London. The tally was two gold medals, two silver medals and two bronze medals in Rio de Janeiro. As for the Tokyo Paralympic Games, Hong Kong put together a team comprising veterans and new blood, with around half of the 24 players having never participated in the Paralympics before. In spite of this, however, they won a total of two silvers and three bronzes, which was actually a decent result.
In this year's Paralympics, most of the 23 Hong Kong athletes possess Paralympic experience. Hopes were high that they would win medals in events such as badminton, boccia, swimming, wheelchair fencing and table tennis. As of about one o'clock in the morning, Hong Kong athletes had won five medals. Young players and veterans have all performed well, and the tally of medals is expected to exceed that of the previous Paralympics.
In the last Paralympic Games, cash awards provided by the Jockey Club Athlete Incentive Awards Scheme (JCAIAS) for medal winners were $800,000 for a gold, $400,000 for a silver and $200,000 for a bronze. These amounts of money were criticised for being too miserly and a far cry from what is handed to Olympic medalists. For this year's Paralympic Games, the relevant parties have agreed to significantly raise the cash awards by over 85% to $1.5 million, $750,000 and $375,000 respectively. This will of course give a fillip to athletes with disabilities. However, apart from generous rewards for medal winners, the authorities should also increase financial support for disabled athletes.
The government's funding for elite athletes is pegged to performance. Lee Cheuk-yiu, a badminton player representing Hong Kong at the Paris Olympics, earlier bemoaned the fact that athletes' contributions are not proportional to their incomes, adding that many have given up their sporting careers because of the government's meagre financial support. Compared with elite athletes with no disabilities, disabled athletes receive even less monthly financial support. As the Hong Kong Sports Institute is set to review the athlete funding mechanism, it is hoped that the authorities will not forget the contributions of disabled athletes.
明報社評 2024.09.03：殘奧港隊穿金戴銀 改善資助政府有責
巴黎殘疾人奧運會，港隊表現出色，龍子健、何宛淇及張沅分別於硬地滾球項目摘金摘銀，連同之前游泳項目兩面獎牌，截至今凌晨1時許，港隊已拿下2金2銀1銅，祝願一眾港隊代表在之後的賽事，續有理想發揮。
巴黎殘疾人奧運會上周三揭幕，逾180個國家及地區參與，港隊今屆派出23名運動員出戰8個大項。過去數十年，殘奧雖緊接於奧運會之後舉行，但二者其實是兩項獨立賽事，由不同機構負責。殘奧由國際殘疾人奧委會（IPC）主辦，首屆夏季殘奧於1960年舉行，後來IPC與國際奧委會（IOC）達成合作協議，才有現時的同步安排。
香港自1972年起參與殘奧，截至上屆賽事，累計獲得40金39銀52銅，成績驕人，只是以往一直未獲太多關注。及至上屆開始，政府一併購下奧運及殘奧轉播權，市民才有機會一睹港隊殘奧代表出戰各項賽事。
回顧過去3屆殘奧，港隊在倫敦摘下3金3銀6銅，在里約則奪得2金2銀2銅；至於東京殘奧，港隊「以老帶新」，24名運動員約半是首度出戰，合計拿下2銀3銅，其實已屬不錯成績。
今屆賽事，港隊23名代表，大多有出戰殘奧經驗，羽毛球、硬地滾球、游泳、輪椅劍擊及乒乓球，均被視為「奪牌希望」。截至今凌晨1時許，港隊已奪下5面獎牌，無論新人和老將都有出色表現，獎牌數目可望超越上屆。
上屆殘奧，賽馬會優秀運動員獎勵計劃為獎牌得主提供的獎金，分別為金牌80萬、銀牌40萬、銅牌20萬元，被指出手太低，跟奧運獎牌得主的獎金更是差天共地。今屆殘奧，有關方面同意大幅加碼逾八成半，分別增至150萬、75萬及37.5萬元，這對殘疾運動員而言，當然有鼓勵作用，然而除了重賞獎牌得主，當局亦應增加對殘疾運動員的津貼支援。
政府對精英運動員的資助，與成績掛鈎，巴黎奧運港隊羽毛球代表李卓耀早前慨嘆，運動員的付出與收入不成正比，因為當局津助太少而放棄當運動員者大有人在。比起健全的精英運動員，殘疾運動員每月所得津助就更少。體院將檢討運動員資助機制，期望當局不會忘記殘疾運動員的付出。
/ Glossary生字 /
stellar：extremely good
field：to provide a candidate, speaker, team, etc to represent you in an election, a competition, etc
meagre：small in quantity and poor in quality