The 29th SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur will be held from 19 to 31 Aug, 2017 following the initial dates from 16 to 30 September 2017 overlapping with the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.
Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) president, Tan Sri Tunku Imran Tuanku Jaafar said they decided to change the date in line with the 60 years of Merdeka Day as requested by Minister of Youth and Sports, Khairy Jamaluddin.
“So we decided to do earlier than the initial date and the minister has agreed with the new date. From our point of view…I think that’s fine, it’s about two weeks early.
“We have to work faster to get ready to organise the Kuala Lumpur SEA Games and I’m sure we will be ready by that time,” he said after chairing the OCM Executive Board meeting at Wisma OCM, here, today.
Commenting on the Malaysian Sepak Takraw Association (PSM) eagerness to make Myanmar’s traditional sports chinlone to be competed in the 2017 SEA Games, Tunku Imran said chinlone is just a discipline of sepak takraw.
He said if sepak takraw can show and prove to the Malaysia’s SEA Games Committee that they can win a gold medal, than they will consider the option.
“We don’t want a sports which is not popular. We want to be at the top of the SEA Games chart. We want to win gold medals,” he said.
Chinlone was an exhibition sports in several local championships such as the 2015 Khir Johari Gold Cup Championship in Penang in January as well as the ISTAF Super Series Championship in Melaka in February.
For the record, Malaysia won one silver and one bronze medal in chinlone at the 2015 SEA Games in Singapore in June. – BERNAMA
