Derek Leung sings Cody Mo’s praises as in-form duo look to continue hot streak at Sha Tin

Motorsport’s governing body said transboundary haze from Indonesian fires, which pushed air pollution in Singapore into unhealthy levels on Thursday, did not “represent a threat” to this weekend’s Formula 1 race in the city state. Singapore’s air quality again crossed the threshold, making it one of the most polluted cities globally, according to the Swiss-based air monitor IQAir. “Air quality levels are being monitored by the relevant local authorities, and appropriate contingency measures are...

It’s still early days in the 2026-27 season, but the start to the new campaign from a trainers’ perspective has been all about a trio of locals as the spotlight shifts to some different names. Through nine meetings, Manfred Man Ka-leung sits atop the championship standings on 10 wins, with Pierre Ng Pang-chi next best on nine and Cody Mo Wai-kit on eight. Each of them has been at the top of the table after bursting out of the gates to start the term. Man, 69, is almost a quarter of the way to...

The LPGA Tour’s 2027 schedule features 33 tournaments, a record US$147 million in prize money and an itinerary that does not have players bouncing across the country. LPGA Commissioner Craig Kessler released the plan for next season on Wednesday and emphasised routing, quality of courses and prize money, and the schedule has ticked several of those boxes. Hong Kong appears on the calendar for the first time in 50 years, with the Futu Ladies World Championship in the first week of March ending a...

No offence to Kyrie Irving’s Dallas Mavericks teammates or, for that matter, the Houston Rockets, but there is no question who will get the loudest cheers on Friday and Sunday in the NBA China Games. Nor is there any doubt which player will attract the most cameras and reporter questions during Thursday’s Mavericks-Rockets Media Day, which is projected to be covered by more than 400 journalists, most of them from China and other Asian countries. China’s love fest with Mavericks star guard...

Jockey Brenton Avdulla will pair back up with remarkable first-up winner Bustling City at Sha Tin on Sunday and the Australian is hoping David Hayes’ excitement machine can continue helping him build on a “competitive” start to the campaign. Avdulla notched up a third winner of the campaign when Golden Fortune roared to success at Happy Valley on Wednesday night and will look to ride that momentum into a marquee ride aboard Bustling City in the Class Three Lau Fau Shan Handicap (1,200m). Ending...

Deprived of the player he called “the future of Hong Kong cricket”, and also without one of the city’s greatest batsmen for the beginning of a winding 2028 T20 World Cup qualifying campaign this week, Kaushal Silva looked forward to a time when key absences were covered by oven-ready replacements from a growing talent pool. Head coach Silva’s 14-man party for the first round of qualifiers in Malaysia features only four players from the last Hong Kong team to compete in a major tournament at the...

Michael Chang Chun-wai celebrated his 400th Hong Kong win and continued his strong start to the season with a double at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. The veteran trainer repeated his brace at Sha Tin last Sunday when New Power and Kwai Chung Talents struck at the Valley under Keith Yeung Ming-lun, who bagged his first two wins of the campaign. Now 64, Chang was an apprentice jockey in Britain for three years before returning to Hong Kong in 1987 to work for the Jockey Club. He worked his way...

Supreme Sha Tin have pulled off an astonishing coup after tempting David Silva out of retirement and into a short-term deal with the ambitious Hong Kong Premier League club. World Cup winner Silva hung up his boots three years ago following an enormously decorated career with Valencia, Manchester City and Real Sociedad. Nonetheless, the 40-year-old was unable to resist the opportunity with newly-promoted Supreme, who this week appointed Englishman Tom Ballantyne as their head coach, and he could...

The reward of a military service exemption for gold medal-winning South Korean athletes could be abolished or reduced in future after public backlash to some controversial comments from winners at the Asian Games. Three players from the men’s football team came under fire for comments following South Korea’s 1-0 win over Japan in the Asian Games final last weekend in Japan. All three apologised but a broader debate had already reignited over whether athletes should receive special treatment for...

Lionel Messi described his retirement from international football as the “saddest day of my career” on Tuesday in Buenos Aires after playing his final game for Argentina in a 3-0 defeat of Benin. Messi, who scored a goal and provided two assists in the victory at the Monumental Stadium, took to the field after the win to express gratitude to fans and teammates as he reflected on his 21-year career with Argentina. “It was a huge source of pride for me to defend this jersey for more than 20...

After completing the interminable process of assembling a world-class coaching team that “knows what it is to win”, Herve Dagorne said he needed to “hurry up” and deliver a champion Hong Kong cyclist before time runs out on his reign. The appointment of two-time Olympic silver medallist Kevin Sireau to lead the city’s sprint squad was the final piece in a particularly tricky jigsaw that head coach Dagorne has been attempting to piece together for the past two years. Also a three-time world...

Rising fencing star Harris Ho Shing-him said for the coming Youth Olympic Games he only had one goal in mind: to win the gold medal. Hong Kong have never won any individual gold medals at the Youth Olympic Games since their inception in 2010, and while teenager Ho had “no idea” who he might face in the capital city of Senegal, he was determined to succeed. “I had a one-week break after the Asian Games and that’s enough for me. I am ready to get going again,” the 17-year-old said. “I am confident...