Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

A few problems to be fixed, but good SEA Games so far, say organisers

KUALA LUMPUR — Hit by political gaffes, as well as transportation and health issues, the ongoing 29th SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur have not been smooth sailing for hosts Malaysia.

Athletes and officials of Malaysia march during the opening ceremony of the 29th Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) in Kuala Lumpur on August 19, 2017. Photo: AFP

Athletes and officials of Malaysia march during the opening ceremony of the 29th Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) in Kuala Lumpur on August 19, 2017. Photo: AFP

KUALA LUMPUR — Hit by political gaffes, as well as transportation and health issues, the ongoing 29th SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur have not been smooth sailing for hosts Malaysia. 

While Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja’afar, president of the SEA Games Federation and the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM), said in a mid-way Games review on Thursday (Aug 24) that Malaysia has so far delivered a “good and high-quality” Games from the sporting point of view, he acknowledged that there were several pressing issues that needed to be fixed.

Food poisoning among athletes was the latest incident to hit the Malaysia Organising Committee (Masoc), with Tunku Imran and Technical Committee chairman Low Beng Choo reporting on Thursday that 16 Malaysian athletes staying at the Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel, the team’s official hotel, had come down with a stomach bug. 

The affected athletes from the 844-strong Malaysian contingent were from various sports, including petanque and swimming. One was warded in hospital on Wednesday for further medical checks. 

“The matter is being investigated by the health ministry and the various authorities,” said Ms Low, who is also the secretary-general of the OCM. 

“We’re not sure if the food was from the hotel; it could have been from outside. They’re locals, so they could have gone out to eat. It’s hard to identify the source. There are close to 1,000 people staying in the hotel, but only 16 were affected. 

“I understand the affected swimmer missed his event (on Wednesday). In the interest of his health, he was asked to skip it.”

Organisers will also be looking into beefing up security for the SEA Games football semi-finals to be played at the Shah Alam and Selayang stadiums on Tuesday. 

It comes after reports emerged that two Myanmar supporters were beaten up by home fans outside the Shah Alam Stadium on Monday, when Malaysia defeated Myanmar 3-1 in their group match. 

Die-hard Malaysian fans also riled supporters from Singapore during the team’s match on Aug 16. Videos that have surfaced online show supporters chanting “Singapore dogs”. 

This, in turn, forced Masoc to issue a statement on the “highly regrettable” incident, and ask fans to behave at matches. 

Said Tunku Imran: “Tensions are high and these things happen … what I would like to see happen is security and safety on the grounds being more vigilant. 

“I’m not sure in South-east Asia that we’ve gotten to the level of sophistication of Europe, where they use television to identity these people and nip the thing in the bud.

“If there are signs that are inappropriate, they should be confiscated and the offenders evicted from the grounds. In sport, this should not happen, and I urge the Malaysian public to support all the teams and athletes. All visitors are our guests and we should treat them with respect.”

Mr Low also added that they are working with the Football Association of Malaysia to formulate a plan to beef up security for the remaining matches. 

The Games organisers have also came under fire after Indonesia’s flag was printed upside down in the Games’ commemorative booklet. 

Indonesians took to social media to slam them for the mistake, while hackers from the country also showed their displeasure by attacking more than 30 Malaysian websites. 

While Masoc and Malaysia’s ministries have apologised to Indonesia, the incident has still sparked off protests in a number of cities in the country, with some people taking to the streets and burning replicas of the Malaysian flag.

Calling the gaffe “inexcusable”, Tunku Imran added: “I’ve been told 8,000 booklets are now being reprinted and redistributed. 

“Of course it’s inexcusable for any flag of any country to be wrong, but these things happen, there are human beings somewhere that do make mistakes, and that is unfortunate.

“I personally have also apologised to the president of the Indonesian Olympic Committee.”

Some 4,888 athletes from 11 countries are competing in 38 sports at the Games, which will end on Wednesday.

Related topics

SEA Games 2017

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.