Laos Ready To Host 25th Sea Games

By D. Arul Rajoo

VIENTIANE, Sept 14 (Bernama) -- Land-locked Laos on Monday declared that it's fully prepared to host its first-ever SEA Games in December.

Deputy Prime Minister Somsavath Lengsavath said that almost all the sporting venues had been completed, including the National Sports Complex built by a Chinese construction firm.

"The complex (16km from here) is 100 per cent completed. We are now in the process of installing electricity, water and sports facilities before the hand-over of the premises on Sept 23," he told a briefing for the diplomatic corps and media here Monday.

Also present was Malaysian Ambassador to Laos, Zainal Abidin Ahmad.

Somsavath said the complex comprised a 20,000-capacity main stadium, a 2,000-seat indoor aquatics complex, a tennis centre, two indoor stadiums and an indoor shooting range.

Work on other new stadiums, renovation of exisitng facilities and rehabilitation of road in the city, leading to the venues were progessing well, he said, adding that all would be completed by November.

About 5,000 athletes from 10 South East Asian countries, as well as newly-established Timor Leste, will be taking part in the region's 25th mini-Olympics from Dec 9 to 18. Some events like football and water polo will begin earlier.

Laos, one of the founding members of the Games, is organising 25 sports which offer 383 gold medals.

The sports are athletics, swimming, archery, badminton, snooker and billiards, Muay Thai, cycling, football, golf, judo, karate-do, sepak takraw, shooting, tennis, table-tennis, taekwondo, volleyball, wrestling, weightlifting, boxing, pencak silat, petanque, fin swimming, diving and shuttlecock.

Somsavath said Laos was grateful to its neighbours and trading partners like Vietnam, Thailand, China, South Korea, Japan and Brunei which have contributed and funded the construction of some of the venues and training centres.

He said athletes competing here would be housed at the Games Village in National Univesity with 4,000 beds, adding that adequate measures were being taken to ensure food safety, with a food testing event scheduled for Oct 17.

A Malaysian company has also been roped in to provide IT services for the registration of participants and result systems, while Laos was purchasing and leasing doping tools to ensure proper drug-control measures during the Games, he said.

-- BERNAMA