The government has been urged to explain why it has decided to limit the number of people who can join upcoming mass sports events to 500.

The call came from Dennis Ng, the executive director of the Hong Kong Association of Athletics Affiliates (HKAAA) – which has cancelled this Sunday's 10-kilometre run in Tin Shui Wai in light of the new rule introduced due to rising Covid figures.

Ng told an RTHK programme on Thursday that the association was informed by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau about the new requirement on Tuesday.

He said the executive committee of the association immediately made counter-suggestions – including dividing the runners into three groups and having them start at different times – but these ideas were rejected by the authorities.

Ng said there is no time to make any other alternative arrangements that would be fair to the 1,500 people who applied to take part, so they have decided to call off the race and fully refund the application fees.

He said the government should explain whether the new limit is a blanket rule, noting that the organiser of the annual cross-harbour swim has also said it may have to postpone or cancel this year’s event scheduled for October after it too was told to slash the number of participants.

“We may have to ask the government for more details about the policy. Why is it 500 for us and the cross-border swim as well? I would like to know whether the figure is decided on a case-by-case basis or is it a blanket requirement?” he said, noting that the running race would have been held outdoors where there is good ventilation.

On a Commercial Radio programme, the chairman of the HKAAA, Kwan Kee, said the new rule was not mentioned at all during a meeting with officials on Monday.

He said authorities have also told them to cut to 500 the number of staff and participants for the trail championships scheduled for next month in Tai Po.

He said the HKAAA is seeking to appeal the decision.

“We hope the government can liaise with us further and review the nature of the matter. We will be running in the hills and will not be gathering,” he said.

“The 500 headcount includes staff. They won’t all be staying at the starting point. There may be about a dozen there, and the rest will be staying along the route to support the runners. I hope we will be able to make an appeal, so to speak,” said Kwan.

He said the cancellations will affect the training of Hong Kong’s athletes and thus their performance in international competitions.