China's Olympic medallists land in Hong Kong for three-day visit

China's Olympic medallists along with a 64-member delegation led by Minister of the General Administration of Sports Liu Peng landed in Hong Kong on Saturday for a three-day trip to the city, which includes sports demonstrations, a visit to an elderly people's home and meetings with aspiring athletes.

The group was greeted on the tarmac by around 200 primary school students. The welcome ceremony at the airport was led by senior officials of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, including Chief Secretary Carrie Lam and Secretary for Home Affairs Lau Kong-wah, reports Efe.

The visit has been met with enthusiasm in the city, with all 5,700 tickets on offer to the public for events with the athletes reportedly snapped up within a few hours on Monday.

After landing, Liu thanked the Hong Kong fans for their enthusiasm.

"We already feel the fire-like passion of Hong Kong people. We are very touched and thrilled," he said, as cited by the South China Morning Post.

The group will leave Hong Kong on Monday afternoon and head to the special administrative region of Macau.

--IANS

gau/pur/bg