Hong Kong Coliseum

Hong Kong Coliseum, commonly known as the Hung Hom Coliseum, is a multi-purpose indoor arena, in Hung Hom Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is in Yau Tsim Mong District.[1]

Hong Kong Coliseum
Hong Kong Coliseum (2008)
Alternative namesHung Hom Coliseum
General information
Architectural styleMinimalism
Address9 Cheong Wan Road
Town or cityHung Hom Bay, Kowloon
Country Hong Kong
Coordinates22°18′5.33″N 114°10′55.23″E
Construction startedMarch 1973 (1973-03)
CompletedAugust 1981 (1981-08)
Inaugurated27 April 1983 (1983-04-27)
Renovated2008 (2008)
CostHK$ 140 000 000
HK$ 160 000 000 (2008 renovation)
ClientUrban Council
ManagementLeisure and Cultural Service Department
Technical details
Structural systemreinforced concrete
Design and construction
Main contractorUrban Council
Other information
Seating capacity12,500
Hong Kong Coliseum
Inside the Hong Kong Coliseum, during the FIVB World Grand Prix
Traditional Chinese香港體育館
Simplified Chinese香港体育馆
Cantonese YaleHēunggóng Táiyuhkgún
Hung Hom Coliseum
Traditional Chinese紅磡體育館
Simplified Chinese红磡体育馆
Cantonese YaleHùhngham Táiyuhkgún
Second alternative Chinese name
Traditional Chinese紅館
Simplified Chinese红馆
Cantonese YaleHùhnggún

It was built by the Urban Council and inaugurated on 27 April 1983. The opening of the stadium coincided with the 100th anniversary of the Urban Council.[2] The coliseum has 12,500 seats, which is the second largest among indoor facilities in Hong Kong, only behind the 2005-opened AsiaWorld–Arena.

It is now managed by the Leisure and Cultural Service Department of the Hong Kong Government.

Facilities

The Hong Kong Coliseum consists of a big arena and a number of conference rooms.

Arena
Hong Kong Coliseum, the inverted pyramid-like construction, right behind the MTR Hung Hom station.

The arena is rectangular with sides 41m each, with a concrete cement flooring.

During performances, the floor may be covered with different overmounted floorings, such as demountable wooden flooring or various rubberized roll-outs, to facilitate the set-up of sporting equipment and the playing of different sporting activities such as futsal, badminton, basketball, volleyball and ice-skating.

Moreover, the floor can hold strong pressures up to 1,800 kg/m2, which cannot even be done by industrial buildings. This facilitates the set up of stages, platforms and sound equipments during concerts and other concert-like performances that requires an elevated stage and good PA systems.

Different technical equipments and a 4-side colour television projection system are also present to project the performer's image onto a screen, so that audience sitting around the rear side of the stadium can also see clearly.

Conference Rooms

The Hong Kong Coliseum offers both open and sheltered areas for holding conventions and conferences. The demountable open stage provides the arena with an excellent forum for public assemblies as well as staging live television broadcasts of opening ceremonies.

Reception Room

The reception room acts as an assistant facility for hirers of the arena and the conference rooms to accommodate visiting VIPs. The room can hold 60 persons.

Events

Even though its formal name in Chinese roughly translates to "Sports Arena", the venue often serves as a concert venue for popular singers. In addition, some universities rent it every year for congregation. Some performances like ice-skating also choose Hong Kong Coliseum as their stages. It was also used every year from 1991 to 2010 to hold the Miss Hong Kong Pageant, except for 2008.

It also hosts a part of the FIVB Volleyball Women's Nations League (before: FIVB World Grand Prix) for volleyball every year.

On 3 June 2001, Irish vocal pop band Westlife held a concert for their Where Dreams Come True Tour supporting their album Coast to Coast. In November 1988 it was a venue for three days (18-20th) of Whitney Houston's World Tour performance. Other performers at the Coliseum in the late eighties/early ninety's included Stevie Wonder, Phil Collins, Kylie Minogue

Venue for 2009 East Asian Games

The Hong Kong Coliseum was one of the venues for the 5th East Asian Games that was hosted in Hong Kong in 2009.

See also

References
  1. "Yau Tsim Mong District" (PDF). Electoral Affairs Commission. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
  2. Wood, Chris (2018-04-26). "Why the Hong Kong Coliseum was built – to avoid embarrassment". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2019-10-15.

Media related to Hong Kong Coliseum at Wikimedia Commons

Events and tenants
Preceded by
Rotterdam Ahoy Sportpaleis
Rotterdam		 FIFA Futsal World Championship
Final Venue
1992		 Succeeded by
Palau Sant Jordi
Barcelona
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