Asia

Kai Tak Sports Park on course for March opening

Featured image credit: Kai Tak Sports Park

Hong Kong’s Sports Minister Kevin Yeung has stated that Kai Tak Sports Park is on course to open in March, while the 50,000-seat stadium that anchors the complex has achieved technical compliance status from the government.

In a post on LinkedIn, Kai Tak Sports Park celebrated another construction milestone by announcing that Kai Tak Stadium has recently achieved technical compliance status following a series of rigorous tests.

All three of the complex’s major event venues – Kai Tak Stadium, the 10,000-seat Kai Tak Arena and the 5,000-capacity Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground – have now met all the required standards and regulatory requirements and are nearing completion.

Main structure and facility work will be completed by the end of the year, after which point the complex will be ready to start hosting events.

A winter testing period had been scheduled for later this year. Speaking in a televised interview on Monday, Yeung said that trials would be carried out in stages, which will now see testing of the main stadium carried out in the first quarter of next year.

 “This represents both a great challenge and an opportunity for the future,” Yeung said, according to the South China Morning Post.

The testing period is set to include rugby and football matches at the main stadium, as well as local sports events at the arena. Events already pencilled in at the stadium include a Coldplay concert, the Hong Kong Sevens tournament and the National Games of China.

Last month, it was announced that Kai Tak Mall, which is part of the wider complex, would house an indoor amusement park operated by CA Sega Joypolis. The park will span five storeys and will feature three key themed zones, one of which will centre on Sonic the Hedgehog.

Kai Tak Sports Park has been designed by Populous and its lead operator is ASM Global. It will host TheStadiumBusiness Asia from October 16-18.