Hong Kong makes leftfield Asian Games flag bearer picks

Basketball and wushu medal hopes will lead delegation at opening ceremony, as chef de mission tells city athletes to ‘achieve new heights’

The 20th Asian Games officially get under way in Japan on Saturday, and the honour of leading the Hong Kong delegation into the opening ceremony has been handed to Ivan Yang and Lydia Sham.

At a welcome event on Thursday, Wong Po-kee, the chef de mission for Hong Kong’s more than 800-strong delegation, said the pair would be the city’s flag bearers for the event at the Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium.

Officials and some of the city’s athletes attended a flag-raising at Nagoya Port Garden Pier, where they were joined by the delegations from China and Macau.

Wong, who is also honorary deputy secretary general of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China, said he and his colleagues would do everything they could to support the 580 athletes who will represent the city across 38 sports.