Society & Politics

Three years ago Mr Chan King-yin decided to retire. He was only 28. Having already won two gold med- als at the Asian Games and with a 3-year- old son at home, Hong Kong windsurfing champion Mr Chan decided not to train for the London Olympics. He was immediately granted two scholarships to study for an undergradu- ate degree in Physical Education and Recreation Management at Hong Kong Baptist University. Mr Chan set three goals when he was an athlete: to compete in the Olympic Games, to get married and have a happy family and to be a university graduate. Now, all three have been accomplished. Now 31, Mr Chan is a coach for the Hong Kong national windsurfing team. He hopes his team members achieve their dreams, just like he managed to do not long ago. "The life of a sportsman is rather flat. It's about training and hard work," he said. "My advice for serving athletes is to be prepared for retirement, plan- ning what should be and will be done afterwards." For young athletes still in their prime, retirement is not a far-fetched idea. Mr Angus Ng Ka-long, 20, a Hong Kong national badminton team member, said he is worried about retirement. "I think I will return to school be- cause I am not interested in coaching work," said the athlete, ranked 43 in the world. Two years ago, Mr Ng had a chance to be admitted by local universities through the Outstanding Sportsmen Recommendation Scheme. "I didn't take that path. I need to con- centrate on my training, and there is no other way but to practise hard," he said. In 2008, the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, Chi- na launched the Hong Kong Athletes Career & Education Programme. The programme, third of …

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Whether transgender people should be legally and socially allowed to acquire a gender that differs from their sex at birth without undergoing sex re-assignment surgeries remains a matter of debate in the not yet trans-friendly city.