A months-long controversy over a national anthem blunder appeared to come to an end on Thursday with the sports body involved slapped with a 'stern' written reprimand but without any cut in funding.

Sports officials ruled that the Ice Hockey Association failed to follow guidelines on the playing of the anthem and this led to a 2019 protest song being used by mistake following a match in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo, in February.

The Sports Federation and Olympic Committee (SF&OC) said earlier that the ice hockey team's leader had failed to give the event organisers a USB stick containing a recording of the anthem. The association said in a report on the incident, however, that the organisers refused to accept the USB drive it offered.

SF&OC honorary secretary-general Edgar Yang said the body had decided on a 'stern' written reprimand, rather than a verbal warning, to reflect the seriousness of the mistake and to act as a deterrent against future lapses – noting the 'inadequacies' in the association's handling of the matter.

However, he said that there would be no cuts to the association's funding.

Yang added that in future, Hong Kong sports teams would have to ask event organisers to acknowledge in writing that they had received a national anthem "tool kit" and that if they refused to do so, players should not attend award ceremonies.

"I think this is so important because external influence, we will not be able to manage it. We can only manage ourselves with proactive attitude and actions to make sure that our national anthem or national flag is properly placed," he said.

The association has also been told it has until May 31 to give the SF&OC more information on how it plans to improve its governance in light of the blunder, with improvements required regarding the selection of players, integrity management and its membership system.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung – who had called for the association to be punished – said he agreed with the SF&OC's decisions.

"[Corporate management] affects the long-term development of various sports. It also impacts on Hong Kong athletes' participation in competitions, as well as their training. Therefore, good management is essential and also involves the use of public funds," he said.

In a separate statement, the government appealed to the ice hockey body and other national sports associations to learn from the incident, comply with all requirements stated in the guidelines, and make sure organisers play the correct national anthem.

It also said the Leisure and Cultural Services Department is further reviewing the use of government funding by the ice hockey association to ensure the proper use of public resources.

The association, for its part, again apologised for the blunder and said it would expedite improvements on corporate governance.
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Last updated: 2023-05-18 HKT 21:21