A triathlete died and now lawmakers are demanding a review of race safety, according to RTHK. That is one line, but ask anyone who has done one of these amateur races in Hong Kong and they will tell you the same thing: the safety briefing is a formality, the real safety plan is "hope the current is kind today." Open water swims in this city run in typhoon season, in shipping lanes, with volunteer marshals on paddleboards. It works until it does not.

Here is the part that gets me. Every one of these events has waivers as thick as a phone book. You sign your life away before you touch the water. But a waiver is not a rescue boat. Lawmakers are now asking the government to actually look at how these races get approved, who checks the water conditions, who has the authority to call it off. That review needs an answer before the next race gets a green light, not after the next funeral.