Sports Kaleidoscope

 

 

Breaking

Originated from the Bronx of New York City in the United States during the 1970s, breaking, a precursor of hip-hop, is a kind of street dance whose style features a combination of individual styles and techniques.  Since the rise of hip-hop as mainstream pop culture in the new millennium, breaking has gained increasing popularity.  Thanks to its debut at the Paris Olympics in 2024, breaking will almost surely take the world by storm again.

 

With strong beats, breakers improvise difficult dance moves in competition against their peers.   Breaking is a new sport beneficial to physical and mental health.  Although it is suitable for people of all ages, its dance moves mostly require breakers to make heavy use of head, hands, shoulders, back or knees.  They must therefore be physically fit to perform such moves.  As such, one should assess his/her own physical condition before breaking.  When practising difficult dance moves, one must be accompanied and guided by professional instructors to prevent injuries.

 

Development of Breaking in Hong Kong

In recent years, the Hong Kong Breaking Team has achieved notable successes.  In 2022, SZE Ka-yam from B-Boy C Plus and TSANG Tsz-wa from B-Boy Think, showcased their ability in the aged 18 or above men’s division at the Breaking for Gold World Series in Korea, where the duo shined together with other top breakers from all over the world, receiving wide appreciations from public.  

 

Breaking was once hugely popular in Hong Kong (HK) in the early 1980s, and even nowadays many community centres and schools still actively organise various breaking activities and interest classes.  The Dance Sport Association of Hong Kong, China (DSAHKC) also holds selection sessions for the Hong Kong Breaking Team annually and provides training for those selected, in a bid to nurture the budding talents of potential.  Moreover, the DSAHKC, through the “School Sports Programme” subvenpted by the LCSD, organises dance demonstrations in various local primary and secondary schools, appealing to more young people to take part in the sport

 

 

 

Basic Skills of Breaking
Breakers must have sound skills in performing on stage, being able to demonstrate their vigour and power.  The dance moves are broadly categorised into the following four types: 

 

Toprock

Toprock is foot movement performed in a standing position.  It involves bouncing and swaying in rhythmic styles and such steps as Shuffles and Kick Steps.

 

Footwork

Footwork refers to various complex dance steps and patterns performed by a breaker on the floor with his hands for support.   Common basic footwork includes Six-step, Crazy Exchange and Sweep.  There are myriads of footwork created by breakers, all with their own distinctive patterns.

 

Freeze

Freeze is a dance move where a breaker maintains a fixed posture by holding his/her body upside down with the support of head or hands when the music stops.  Common moves like Chair Freeze, Air Chair, and Air Flare require precision and smooth execution.  

 

Power Moves

Power Moves is a dance move where a breaker uses various parts of his/her body as a pivot point to spin continuously on the floor.  Blending the elements of gymnastics and martial arts, breaking undergoes transformation, which gives rise to a range of highly challenging yet visually impressive moves including Back-spins, Head-spins, and Windmills.

 

 

 

 

“Sports Subvention Scheme”

The Second National Sports Associations Outstanding Staff Award

 

Since 2021-22, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) has established the “Sports Subvention Scheme – National Sports Associations (NSAs) Outstanding Staff Award”, with an aim of recognising the outstanding performance of various NSAs’ staff under the Sports Subvention Scheme and their contributions to their respective NSAs as well as to sports.   Each NSA may nominate one outstanding staff member for the election, who must have served his or her NSA for no less than five consecutive years.  The assessment criteria mainly cover the following six performance aspects: 

 
1 Making notable contributions
2 Proposing sound improvement recommendations
3 Promoting teamwork and cohesiveness
4 Optimising effective use of information technology
5 Demonstrating leadership
6 Contributing toward the enhancement of corporate governance

 

The LCSD organised “The Second National Sports Associations Outstanding Staff Award” in 2022-23.  As in the past, the event obtained the steadfast support from NSAs and received a large number of nominations from the participating organisations.  Upon assessment, a total of 10 staff members from various NSAs won the Award this year.   The list of the awardees is as follows (not ranked in the order of importance):

 

 

LAU Siu-ying	Sports Executive, Hong Kong China Bodybuilding and Fitness Association
LAM Pui-yan	Senior Sports Executive, Chinese Martial Arts Dragon and Lion Dance Association of Hong Kong, China
LAU Nga-ting	Head of Events and Administration, Hong Kong, China Rowing Association
MA Wai-keung	Senior Sports Executive, Windsurfing Association of Hong Kong, China
CHENG Sek-hei	Sports Executive, Sailing Federation of Hong Kong, China
LI Kam-yiu	Senior Sports Executive, Hong Kong Badminton Association
LEUNG Cheuk-yan	Deputy Sports Director General, Hong Kong China Swimming Association
LEUNG Yi-man	Sports Executive, Hong Kong Taekwondo Association
CHEUNG Tsun-hin	Acting Executive Director, Hong Kong Tenpin Bowling Congress
WONG Ching	Sports Executive, Hong Kong, China Wushu Union

 

The LCSD announced the above list of awardees during the “Annual Briefing for National Sports Associations” at the Olympic House on 16 March.  Miss Winnie CHUI Hiu-lo, the LCSD Deputy Director (Leisure Services), and Mr HUNG Tak-chuen, the Assistant Director (Leisure Services), presented certificates of commendation to the awardees.  Many congratulations to all of the awardees. We hope NSAs will continue to work with their staff together in promotion of sports development in Hong Kong.