Chinese Olympians show their cheerful side as they advise Hong Kongers to never give up

The showpiece event at the Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Wan Chai included demonstrations of table tennis, badminton, skateboarding and breakdancing.

The audience was treated to a surprise singing performance by gold medal-winning gymnasts Liu Yang and Zou Jingyuan, while diving champion Long Daoyi performed a short rap.

Earlier, the delegation of 65 athletes, who are on a three-day visit, was divided into four groups for knowledge-sharing and exchange sessions at the Hong Kong Sports Institute in Sha Tin, St Paul’s College in Sai Ying Pun, the South China Athletic Association in Causeway Bay and the Fire and Ambulance Services Academy in Tseung Kwan O.

Members of the disciplined services and their affiliated youth groups met 22 athletes from the Mainland Olympic Games at the Fire and Ambulance Services Academy, where athletes from 10 sports gave demonstrations and youngsters learned their winning moves.

Table tennis veteran Ma Long, world record holder swimmer Pan Zhanle and the artistic swimming twins Wang Qianyi and Wang Liuyi put on unconventional shows.

Instead of using bats, Ma and men’s table tennis champion Fan Zhendong played against the junior players with a pan lid and a wok spatula.

A number of Olympians shared tips on how they overcame tough training, intense competition stress and even looming injuries to deliver great performances.

Weightlifting champion Hou Zhihui said her refusal to bow to failure motivated her as she persevered in a thrilling competition at the Paris Olympics.

Meanwhile, the athletes arrived at St Paul’s College at around 9.20am for a session to share experiences with the students, leaving around noon. Among them were diving duo Quan Hongchan and Chen Yuxi and table tennis player Chen Meng.

Although the press was not allowed to attend, Quan appeared in a video on the social media platform Weibo, in which she told students that the ten years she had trained had been “hard” and “tiring”.

“There are times when I want to give up,” she said. “I think to myself, I’ve been doing this for so long, why not keep going? I have to push myself to do better.”

A clip also showed Chen Quan and another athlete learning to play table tennis, prompting cheers from the crowd.

Fourth-grader Brian Yiu said he enjoyed hearing how athletes handled the competition.

“Athletes tell us how they feel differently when they’re ahead or behind,” he said. “That gives me insight into their strong mindset.”

After a lunch reception at the Central Government Liaison Office in Sai Wan, the delegation had time in the afternoon to visit The Peak and Victoria Harbour on their own.

A 45-minute visit to The Peak shopping mall ended with bags full of souvenirs for the athletes. Quan was one of the most satisfied participants, with a bag full of soft toys, her favorites.

Mack Ho, 12, told The Peak fans that he started playing table tennis after watching Ma Long play at the Tokyo Olympics. He brought his bat and a pen in the hope of getting his idol’s autograph.

The boy, who had waited for at least three hours, said: “I am not disappointed because some athletes were looking at me and waving at me.”

As a highlight, the delegation boarded one of the famous green and white Star Ferry ships at Wan Chai pier for a approximately 20-minute ride to the Tsim Sha Tsui tourist district.

Weightlifters Li Wenwen and Hou Zhihui were captured on camera having fun reenacting a famous scene from the film Titanic where main character Jack holds Rose by her waist at the front of the ship.

Quan and skateboarder Cui Chenxi stared into the water as Quan made a fake diving motion.

Additional reporting by Paul McNamara, Angeline Jiang, Leopold Chen and Vivian Au