| Hong Kong at the 1956 Summer Olympics | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| IOC code | HKG |
| NOC | Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong |
| Website | www |
| inMelbourne/Stockholm | |
| Competitors | 2 in 1 sport |
| Officials | led byArnaldo de Oliveira Sales[1] |
| Medals |
|
| Summer Olympics appearances (overview) | |
Hong Kong, a British colony at the time, competed at the1956 Summer Olympics inMelbourne,Australia from 22 November to 8 December 1956. This was Hong Kong's second appearance in an Olympic Games. Two athletes, both men, participated in the swimming event. Hong Kong did not win a medal in Melbourne Olympics. The best result wasCheung Kin Man, who came 22nd inMen's 100 m freestyle.
TheNational Olympic Committee (NOC) for Hong Kong was founded in 1950 as the Amateur Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong,[2] and was renamed in 1999 to theSports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF&OC).[2][3] It was recognized by theInternational Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1951,[2][4][5] and subsequently, Hong Kong began to be represented separately fromGreat Britain. Hong Kong made its Olympics Games debut in1952 at Helsinki.[5][6] 1956 Melbourne Olympics was Hong Kong's 2nd appearance at an Olympic Games.[6] The delegation in 1956 consists of two swimmers,Cheung Kin Man andWan Shiu Ming.[7] The delegation was led byArnaldo de Oliveira Sales, president of Amateur Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong at the time.[1][8][9]
Cheung Kin Man was 24 years old at the time of Melbourne Olympics.[10] He had previously represented Hong Kong at the1952 Summer Olympics inHelsinki, and would represent Hong Kong again at the1960 Summer Olympics inRome.[10][11][12] In 1964, Tokyo Olympics torch relay, Cheung, would be the torch bearer for the last leg.[13]Wan Shiu Ming was 18 years old at the time of Melbourne Olympics.[14] This was his only appearance in Olympic Games.[14] Wan would later win the Cross Harbour Race six times,[15] winning the nickname of 'Flying Fish of Victoria Peak' (太平山飛魚).[16]
The following is the list of the number of competitors in the Games.
| Sport | Men | Women | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swimming | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 2 | 0 | 2[7] |
On 29 November, bothCheung Kin Man andWan Shiu Ming participated in themen's 100 m freestyle.[17] Cheung was assigned to heat two. He finished in 59.8 seconds, ranked 4th in the heat and 22nd overall, tied withHans Köhler fromGermany.[17] Wan was assigned to heat five. He finished in 1:00.7, ranked 7th and the last in the heat and 32nd overall, tied withAndré Laurent fromBelgium.[17] Only the fastest 16 advanced to the semi-finals, and hence both Cheung and Wan were eliminated.[17][18] The gold medal was won byJon Henricks, silver byJohn Devitt and bronze byGary Chapman, all fromAustralia.[17][19] On 1 December, Wan participated in themen's 400 m freestyle.[20] He was assigned to heat one. He finished in 5:02.6, ranked 7th and the last in the heat and 32nd overall. Only the fastest 8 advanced to the final, so Wan was eliminated.[20] The gold medal was won byMurray Rose fromAustralia, silver byTsuyoshi Yamanaka fromJapan and bronze byGeorge Breen fromUSA.[21] On 4 December, Cheung participated inmen's 100 m backstroke.[22] He was assigned to heat six. He finished in 1:14.0, ranked 6th and the last in the heat and 25nd overall. Only the fastest 16 advanced to the semi-final, so Cheung was eliminated.[22] The gold medal was won byDavid Theile fromAustralia, silver byJohn Monckton and bronze byFrank McKinney fromUSA.[23]
| Athlete | Event | Heat | Semifinal | Final | Ref. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | |||
| Cheung Kin Man | Men's 100 m backstroke | 1:14.0 | 6 | Did not advance | 25 | [22][23][24] | ||
| Men's 100 m freestyle | 59.8 | 4 | Did not advance | =22 | [17][24] | |||
| Wan Shiu Ming | Men's 100 m freestyle | 1:00.7 | 7 | Did not advance | =32 | [17] | ||
| Men's 400 m freestyle | 5:02.6 | 7 | Did not advance | 32 | [20] | |||