VIETNAM asked for more time to decide on whether the 31st Southeast Asian Games will go on as scheduled in November or postponed to next year.
Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) President Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino said the Vietnamese organizers sought a 14-day window to make a final decision.
“They [Vietnamese] are hesitant to make a decision,” said Tolentino after the one-hour virtual meeting among members of the SEA Games Federation.
The Hanoi SEA Games are scheduled from November 21 to December 2 and the Vietnamese, citing rising Covid-19 cases, told the SEA Games Federation that they are moving the Games to July 2022.
Eight member countries tried to persuade Vietnam to host the games as scheduled with Myanmar siding with the host because of its political crisis and Laos abstaining.
Tolentino said the POC will abide by whatever decision Vietnam will make.
“We will respect the decision of Vietnam because we cannot do anything if they say the games are postponed,” he said.
Vietnam is ready to host the games after completing all infrastructure ahead of time, but its reluctance is borne out of its Covid-19 cases. There were 207 new cases in Vietnam, way below that of the Philippines’s 4,338 last Wednesday.
Organizers of the Tokyo Olympics, in contrast, are going on with the games starting July 23.
More than 10,000 athletes and thousands more coaches, officials and members of media are converging in Tokyo for the 17-day Olympics.
The Philippines intends to send more than 600 athletes who will be competing in 39 of the 40 sports in the Vietnam SEA Games.
Athletes and coaches bound for the Tokyo Olympics and the SEA Games, meanwhile, will get their second dose of the Sinovac vaccine on Friday at the Manila Prince Hotel along San Marcelino Street in Manila.
Image courtesy of roy domingo
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