This year’s edition of the Cross Harbour Race will take place on October 23 and will have a participant quota of 1,500 swimmers. The race will begin at Golden Bauhinia Square Public Pier in Wan Chai and end at Avenue of Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui. Registrations for the event will open at 11 am on September 17 and close on 11:59 pm on September 23. The registration ballot results will be announced on September 28.

According to an official Instagram post, there will be two categories of races: leisure and racing. Those who wish to be included in the racing group must pass time trials at La Salle College Swimming Pool and Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park Swimming Pool on October 1 and 2 respectively, or have relevant approved credentials. The fastest 50 male and female swimmers will qualify for this group, and will be announced on October 11.

The route of the 2022 Cross Harbour Race (© Hong Kong China Swimming Association)

In addition, double silver medalist at the Tokyo Olympics, Siobhan Haughey, and former Hong Kong Swimming Team member, Kevin Chu, are the ambassadors for the event.

Swimmers must comply with several anti-Covid measures to take part in this year’s race. They must have eligible vaccine passes, take a PCR test 48 hours before the event and produce a negative test, and submit electronic health declaration forms. On October 23, they must also take a rapid antigen test (RAT) and use the LeaveHomeSafe app before entering the race venue.

Last year’s edition of the Cross Harbour Race was held in December 2021 and also had a participant quota of 1,500. The event also saw leisure and racing groups swim the Wan Chai-Tsim Sha Tsui route for the first time in the race’s history, in two batches.

The event first started as the Hong Kong Cross-Harbour Swim in 1906, but was halted in 1978 because of the polluted waters in Victoria Harbour. It was revived in 2011 as the New World Harbour Race.

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News of the confirmation of this year’s race comes after the 2022 Rugby Sevens was confirmed for November 4-6. There will be a sports bubble for players and officials, and they will not be allowed to interact with the public. Drinking will be allowed in the stands, but spectators can only eat at food outlets to minimise mask-off activities at the event.

Header image credits: New World Harbour Race

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From the Middle East to the Far East and a couple of places in between, Anjali has lived in no fewer than seven cities in Asia, and has travelled extensively in the region. She worked as a lifestyle journalist in India before coming to Hong Kong, where her favourite thing to do is island-hopping with her daughter. You can check out her musings on motherhood, courtesy her Instagram profile.

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