To promote recreational and sports activities, the Provisional Regional Council organised a total of 7 799 training courses, competitions and recreational programmes for 428 363 people of all ages and abilities in 1998. A total of $34.53 million was allocated for the organisation of variety of programmes including athletics, water sports, bill games, racket games, fitness, dance, tai chi, camping excursions, golf and lawn bowls. It also maintained close liaison with various local organisations in promoting recreational and sports activities in the nine New Territories districts. In all, 407 programmes were co-organised with local organisations and drew 62 379 participants.

          Two main sports and leisure facilities were opened for public use during the year. They are the Shing Mun Valley Sportsground, which replaced the Yeung Uk Road Sportsground, and the Tsuen King Circuit Indoor Recreation Centre in Tsuen Wan.

          For those interested in water sports, the main pool housed in the Shing Mun Valley Swimming Complex provides year-round access. Together with the existing pools in Fanling, Sha Tin, Tuen Mun and Yuen Long, the new pool in Shing Mun Valley brought the total number of heated pools in the council area to five.

          The Hung Shing Yeh Beach Building on Lamma Island now provides swimmers and visitors with additional amenities.

          The Ma On Shan Park, which commands a good view of Tolo Harbour and Pat Sin Leng, entices visitors to take a peaceful stroll. A reptile house within Tuen Mun Park provides the public with an opportunity to understand wildlife and develop an appreciation for its preservation. It comprises a courtyard exhibition hall and five large display cases accommodating various local species of live reptiles.

The Sports Subsidy Scheme was established in 1986. It provides financial assistance to promotional sporting events organised by bona fide sports associations and non-profit-making associations. In 1998, a subsidy of $10.8 million was granted to support 2 930 sports events under this scheme and over 291 824 participants were attracted.

The council provides and manages 15 sportsgrounds, 17 swimming pool complexes, 34 indoor recreation centres, 126 tennis courts, 123 squash courts, two golf driving ranges and a public riding school.

          It also manages three water sports centres (Chong Hing, Tai Mei Tuk and Wong Shek) and three holiday camps (Lady MacLehose Holiday Village, Sai Kung and Tso Kung Tam Outdoor Recreation Centres). During the year, 57 556 and 342 749 people visited the water sports cents and the holiday camps respectively.

The Corporate Games, organised for the working population, attracted 9 826 participants from 253 industrial and commercial organisations in 18 sports competitions. The Masters Games, held specically for the 35 and above age group, attracted more than 2 685 participants in 12 competitions.

Since 1988, the biennial Regional Council Festival has become a community-wide event and an integral part of the council's work. The slogan of Regional Council Festival 1998 was 'Pledged to Excellent Service'. It was the first Regional Council Festival held after the Handover and the council organised some 100 events featuring different Chinese elements. Events covered included recreation, sports cultural and arts performances, exhibitions and promotional activities on environmental hygiene. It ran for four months from November 1998 and attracted about one million participants.

          Recreational and sports events included a Chinese Vaudeville Show featuring Chinese folk art; a Wushu Spectacular bringing together local and Mainland masters; the International Kite Flying Festival; a Sand Sculpture Competition; and the Communication Carnival allowing participants to explore various ways of communication and transmission through time and space.

          Cultural and arts events included the Kirov Ballet and Russian State Chorus from Russia, the Guangzhou Acrobatics Troupe and China Folk Songs Ensemble from China, the Philharmonic Orchestra of Radio France and pop singer Tsai Chin from Taiwan. Four commissioned works were produced by local artists including the City Contemporary Dance Company, Chung Ying Theatre, children songs singers and a galaxy of Cantonese operatic artists. A museum exhibition The Art of Chinese Ceramics from Han to Tang culled from works of art donated by Dr T. T. Tsui attracted approximately 25 000 people.

          To promote the theme of healthy living, promotional activities on environmental hygiene were introduced to the public. Events like Towngas Household Hygiene - Any Idea Roving Exhibition, Waste Reduction - Plastic Re-cycling Competition and a clean restaurant competition were launched.

The council staged large-scale festive celebrations with community involvement. Performance and demonstration by top athletes added colour and excitement to events for New Year's Day, Spring Lantern Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival.

To celebrate the first anniversary of the establishment of the HKSAR in July 1998, the council organised a variety of recreational and sports activities, including carnival - type events, competitions, an open day for leisure facilities and sport demonstrations by local and Guangdong performing groups. More than 10 000 people took part in these activities.