Winners will have to settle for gold medals

Wealthy Hong Kong family will reformulate its award system

The golden era might finally be over.

Hong Kong's wealthy Fok family began awarding Chinese Olympic gold medalists a kilogram of gold right from the beginning.

It started in 1984, when China won its first Olympic title at a time when the government treated winners to a nice dinner and not much else.

Nearly three decades later, a change might be imminent as a growing number of sponsors has begun actively contributing to gold medalists.

"I will focus on inspiring youth participation in sports and also bringing sports, culture and education together," Timothy Fok, president of the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong and a member of International Olympic Committee, told China Daily in an exclusive interview in London.

"All in all, I am going to be advocating the concept of sports for all (instead of as a luxury) among the Chinese youth."

He is the son of the late tycoon Henry Fok, who began awarding the kilogram of gold. The reason? He told his son the most emotional moment of his life came when pistol shooter Xu Haifeng won that first gold medal for China at the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

Fok said he decided to shake things up thanks to the Chinese sports federation's improved ability to obtain sponsorships as the country has developed economically.

Fok, born in Hong Kong in 1946, has been a member of the IOC for 11 years and president of the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong for 15.

He and his father began working for a Chinese IOC seat in the 1970s, and helped put together Beijing's two Olympic bids.

He is helping organize the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro after playing a similar role in Beijing.

"We are passionate about the Olympics for reasons that go beyond sports and gold medals," Fok said. "It is more about legacies and showcasing the inspirational side of a nation."

He considers the Beijing Olympics one of the best the world has seen.

"I can still remember the countdown at the opening it was an emotional moment that nearly half the world's population was focusing on," Fok said. "Chinese history was condensed into hours."

He was also fond of London's opening ceremony.

"(Beijing and London) are different and unique and both implanted their own cultural heritages in (the ceremony)," said Fok, who was partially educated in the UK and grew up during a time when Hong Kong was a British colony. "I think both for us were very emotional moments."

His family will soon become even more firmly entwined with the Games.

Retired Chinese diver Guo Jingjing will wed his son, Kenneth Fok, though he's not sure when.

"But they will make up their own minds, and maybe I will be the last one to know," Fok said.

It has been reported the wedding will be held later this year. Guo, a four-time Olympic gold medalist, was with the Foks in London.

"She is one of the most accomplished athletes," Fok said. "She is very disciplined, very focused. She is a pleasant young lady."

fujing@chinadaily.com.cn