'Flying fish' lands two more medals for HK

Hong Kong's "flying fish" Siobhan Haughey won her second bronze of the Paris Games on Thursday, this time in the women's 100m freestyle, becoming the first athlete from the region to clinch four Olympic medals. It also takes the total number of medals won so far by Hong Kong, China, at this summer's Olympics to four.

Its first two were individual gold medals in fencing — won by Vivian Kong Man-wai in the women's epee, and Edgar Cheung Ka-long in the men's foil — followed by Haughey's bronzes in the 200m and 100m freestyle.

In the 100m freestyle final, Haughey finished the first 50 meters in 25.09 sec, putting her in second place, but dropped back to third, taking the bronze in a time of 52.33 sec.

After the finals, Haughey spoke to the media, saying that although medals are important, what matters most to her is that she has put in a tremendous amount of effort and truly enjoyed this competition.

Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government officials, including Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, sent congratulations to Haughey and her coach.

"Siobhan has maintained a high level of performance and remained fearless against the world's best athletes throughout the competition," Lee said, adding that all Hong Kong residents, including himself, are proud of Haughey.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Kevin Yeung Yun-hung said that Haughey demonstrated extraordinary skill, and emphasized that the city is both thrilled and proud of her.

During the women's 200m freestyle on Tuesday, Haughey finished third with a time of 1 minute 54.55 sec.

Kong, who won the team's first gold at the Paris Olympics on Saturday, returned to Hong Kong on Thursday morning and received a rapturous welcome at the airport. The 30-year-old fencer expressed her gratitude to the public, and thanked everyone for supporting the athletes.

"It is a blessing to be an athlete in Hong Kong, especially in fencing." Kong thanked her predecessors for their efforts, which she said have enabled the current generation of athletes to enjoy greater resources to pursue their dreams.

She also congratulated Cheung and Haughey on their achievements, and emphasized that the efforts and passion of athletes cannot always be measured by their results.

Regarding the prize money of HK$6 million ($769,000), awarded under the Jockey Club Athlete Incentive Awards Scheme, Kong expressed her intention to set up a charity fund aimed at supporting more children to engage in fencing. She aspires to increase the exposure of sports, with the hope that more individuals will discover one they enjoy and excel at.

Kong's brilliant performance also garnered plaudits from the Chinese mainland. In Mandarin, she expressed gratitude for the support, and said that all athletes deserve to be appreciated.

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, held three years ago, Hong Kong secured six medals, including one gold by Cheung and two silvers by Haughey.