Kicking goals in sports promotion (hktdc.com)


	Sports promoter Nick Mould is excited about Hong Kong's elite sporting potential

Sports promoter Nick Mould believes Asia is the new frontier for the sports industry. The Briton cut his teeth in journalism in Hong Kong before carving a new career as a sports promoter. He now heads the East Asia Division of the World Sport Group, based in Hong Kong. The company manages commercial rights for regional sporting events, including the Asian Football Confederation, the Indian and Singapore Golf Opens, the Omega China Tour and the Indian Premier League. The former journalist says the best thing about Hong Kong is that it is always changing.

"I arrived in Hong Kong on February 16, 1987. It was amazing flying into the old Kai Tak Airport, where it was a test of a pilot's skill to land the plane in the middle of the city. My first impression getting off the plane was how nice it was to be warm in February, coming from a particularly cold winter in Britain that year. I was struck by the pace of the city, the sheer volume of the people, the traffic. Hours later, back in my hotel room, I looked out over Victoria Harbour, and fell in love with the city right there.

I found work as a journalist, working for several local media outlets, including radio and television. Being a journalist during those watershed years, I believe, gave me a richer insight into the city than a typical expatriate living in Hong Kong might usually get. During that time, I was able to witness momentous changes, including in Beijing, where I was one of only about a dozen foreign journalists to cover the 1990 Asian Games – the first large-scale sports event to take place in modern China. Twenty years since, I have the sense that Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong have become increasingly at ease with each other. And as these cities continue maturing, the fact they are becoming increasingly intertwined can only be beneficial. The recent Beijing Olympics is proof of that: Hong Kong people showed true affinity and genuine pride in China's success.

Regional growth

I moved into sports promotion when World Sport was set up initially in Hong Kong in 1992. We started out life working with the Asian Football Confederation, then the Asian Basketball Confederation. In 1995, we started the Asian Professional Golfers Association, and in 2000, joined forces with the International Cricket Council. We currently have eight offices across Asia with more than 150 staff.

I have been extremely fortunate with the diversity of work we have undertaken over the past 15 years. We have put on events in 32 countries across the region, going live with football matches from Pyongyang to Tehran to Riyadh. Our football and golf activities have seen us work in more than 20 cities in the mainland – something that truly puts us at the forefront of our industry in this region. One of the highlights of my time here has been when we delivered the first live broadcasts of sporting events from post-war Vietnam in 1998, when the country hosted the ASEAN Football Championship, otherwise known as the Tiger Cup. It was such an incredible atmosphere because the Vietnamese, who are crazy about football, made it to the final.

Sport brings people together. And as Asia's world city, Hong Kong needs to increasingly integrate its sporting activities with the Chinese mainland, with Hong Kong leading the way. We need one or two football or basketball clubs to be part of the Chinese mainland league. It would stimulate growth, not only in sports, but in other sectors such as tourism, which would benefit from the spillover effects. If we can grow local talent, a large proportion of the local population will watch football if you give them a team to support.

Huge potential

Business and sports, nowadays, are closely linked. And if sport is a business, and this town is about money, what's stopping us? There's a huge potential here that has yet to be realised. The potential for developing professional sports teams in the South China region alone is huge. Major events such as the East Asian Games, come and go – what we need is a regular sporting diet.

There's nothing like the Hong Kong skyline on its best day. Its topography is truly unique. I can't think of many places with such intensity, where the city is closely intertwined with nature. But it's the people who make Hong Kong tick, making it a true melting pot. Hong Kong is unique in its edge and desire to want to be moving all the time. A friend summed it up nicely: there's nothing that has changed in Hong Kong because Hong Kong is always changing. That's the attraction. The city is never still. While it has its issues, they are also what make Hong Kong real."