Retired four-time Olympic diving champion Guo Jingjing will marry Kenneth Fok Kai-kong, the son of Hong Kong tycoon Timothy Fok Tsun-Ting, in a multi-day, multi-city celebration this weekend。
The couple's romance has drawn headlines since it became public in 2004, though a wedding date hadn't been confirmed。
According to the Guangdong-based Nanfang Metropolis Daily, Guo and Fok will make things official at the Fok family mansion in Hong Kong on Thursday before treating guests from sports, politics and business to a feast two days later in the Nansha Grand Hotel in Guangdong province, where the family has roots。
The hotel will cater to almost 100 guests with an eight-course, three-hour banquet, which will begin at 6 pm and include a pre-dinner party and a firework show on the lawn。
Guo, an animal-rights activist, will not serve shark fin, a traditional delicacy at Chinese wedding receptions。
The celebration will shift to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center on Sunday, when more relatives, celebrities and political figures will help wrap up the affair。
Guo's former national teammates Wu Minxia and Li Ting, both Olympic gold medalists, will attend the Hong Kong leg as bridesmaids, while Fok's two brothers - Eric Fok Kai-shan and Jeremy Fok Kai-yan - will be the best men, according to NetEase.com。
Unlike many high-profile couples, who prefer to keep their weddings private, the Fok family has invited the media to cover the event and released details to the public。
According to multiple Hong Kong media reports, the wedding will cost the Fok family about 15 million yuan ($2.4 million). The family has also bought a house, reportedly worth 30 million yuan, for the couple and has given a 10-million yuan cash gift to Guo's family。
Those figures are down from what they might have been, however, because Kenneth and his father were involved in lawsuits with other family members over how to split and manage their inheritance from patriarch Fok Ying-tung。
The 33-year-old Kenneth, the eldest grandson of Fok Ying-tung, met Guo when she competed at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where she claimed gold medals in the synchro and individual 3m springboards。
Their relationship was soon making headlines after a photograph of them was published。
Guo moved on to defend her two titles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and announced her retirement from diving in January. Her last major event was the 2009 East Asian Games in Hong Kong。
After that, she returned to Remin University to continue her undergraduate studies in business management. She also began learning English, a move widely believed to be preparation for her entry into the Fok family。
Inspired by Kenneth's father, the president of the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, the family has a tradition of supporting and funding sports developments both on the Chinese mainland and in Hong Kong。
香港“明报”报道，郭晶晶将于11月8日结束与霍启刚的7年爱情长跑，正式嫁入霍家豪门， 成就一段世纪婚礼。近日一对新人忙于彩排婚事，今天进行注册仪式的霍家大宅及于10号摆酒的南沙大酒店亦已进行布置，积极准备迎接这宗世纪喜事。
已故富豪商人霍英东的孙子霍启刚，于明日与郭晶晶结婚。当天将在霍家大宅内进行注册仪式。一对新人继而会回到南沙，10号在霍家的南沙大酒店内摆喜酒，筵开约60席，主要邀请当地官员、国家运动员及霍家家乡亲友，不少朋友都会入住该酒店以方便赴宴。到11号早上，会返港于湾仔会展设下超过120桌婚宴，稍后再回北京摆酒。
加围板防偷拍
记者昨日发现霍家大宅是用西式布置的，但为防媒体能从大宅拱门外拍到里面情况，甚至把大门围板再加高，并将所有窗户围上轻纱。另一边，南沙大酒店昨日也已开始布置，并筑起帐篷。据知由8号开始，酒店几乎不对外开放及不设订房外，当日宴会厅也是全层封闭不让外人进入，更要求保安及服务员只可用对讲机联络，不能用手机，以防拍下照片流出。
曾志伟当司仪用双语主持
据香港“文汇报”消息，日前，曾志伟现身，被问及为霍启刚、郭晶晶的世纪婚礼自己会送什么婚礼，他回应说：“他们什么都有，礼物好难选，如果送祝福又话我‘行’。”他透露已跟一对郭晶晶霍启刚吃过很多顿饭，主要是谈婚礼的事情，他还称知道他们请来世界各地的宾客，连约旦王子都会出席，到时要“双语”。
曾志伟称，“他们(霍家)叫我当日做司仪自由发挥，不想太严肃”。被问到是否收重金礼聘才做司仪，他表示，“我收了是要再拿出来做礼金，我想最重要是诚意。”曾志伟透露只会做11日(本周日)香港婚宴司仪，南沙因连摆三天，他要忙新戏，故不会出席，而且听闻霍家仍在不停邀请嘉宾中。
两地婚礼流程
“刚晶”这场令人期待的世纪婚礼举行在即，踏入倒数阶段，一切都不容有失！这里先预告一下婚礼的精彩安排。
11月8日：霍家大宅注册
11月9日：婚宴彩排
11月10日：广州南沙婚宴(筵开60席)
地点：南沙大酒店
宾客：内地政商界名人流程：4:00pm酒店大堂举行鸡尾酒会。
7:00 pm 晚宴，每位宾客会有一只四至六头的南非鲍鱼，人均费用高达逾千元，另有健康的蔬菜饺及新潮的分子美食甜品。
9:00 pm 在泳池边草地举行户外酒会，届时还安排长达三分钟的烟花。
11月11日：香港婚宴(筵开150席)
地点：香港湾仔会展中心
宾客：政商界重要人物，郭晶晶国家队亲密战友
大会司仪：曾志伟、朱凯婷
伴娘：吴敏霞
伴郎：霍启刚两位弟弟霍启山和霍启仁
保安：非常严密，聘请了约百名保安护驾。
精彩环节：播放霍启刚和父亲早前拍摄的一段关于父子情的温馨短片。

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