A former colleague in advertising revisiting Hong Kong after over twenty years was mentioning just how much the city- and everything in it- has changed, and not for the better either. Having been invited to Riyadh for the running of the Saudi Cup and watching Japan’s Forever Young win and meeting the team behind this equine superstar, we talked about the horse racing in Hong Kong, which he had seen up close and personal last Thursday at the bang a gong Chinese New Year’s Day

Though the marketing of Hong Kong is not without its shortcomings- there’s a smirk hiding in there- it says something when you’re told by those who know to hold off from coming to America and stay put, because, with my colour and looks, I will very probably have quite an ordeal trying to enter a country, that if the nonstop news is to be believed, is caught up in a crossfire hurricane of divisiveness, racism, goofiness and a dangerous brand of legalised lawlessness. For Hong

I know some extremely good and multi talented creatives in leading multinational advertising agencies- award winning Creative Directors- who have tried and failed to go the distance when trying to make horse racing something more than what it has been for decades and decades with a cherry on top and before the wheels coming off. Showing horse racing in its best possible light and in an ONGOING way seems to be mission: impossible and one probably knows why, but let’s not dwell