Thailand's unreasonable demands are strongly opposed, SEA Games 33 is heating up right now

The possibility of the Cambodian sports delegation participating in the 33rd SEA Games remains open, while the host country Thailand has just decided to change the venue of the opening ceremony due to security concerns.

The opening and closing ceremonies of the 33rd SEA Games were held at Rajamangala Stadium.

On August 5, Mr. Sorawong Thienthong, Minister of Tourism and Sports of the host country of Thailand - Head of the organizing committee, when chairing a meeting to evaluate the organization of the 33rd SEA Games, decided to change the location of the opening and closing ceremonies. Accordingly, these two important events will only take place at Rajamangala Stadium to ensure the safety of athletes and officials of sports delegations. Sanam Luang, the place previously planned to hold the above events, will now be the location for the SEA Games torch lighting, according to Thai newspaper Thairath. All of the above locations are in the capital Bangkok. This change is said to stem from concerns related to the recent border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia, which is still not really peaceful.

SEA Games 33 has not yet taken place but is already "hot" with the possibility of many major changes.

Photo: Giang Lao

Mr. Sorawong Thienthong also proposed banning the Cambodian sports delegation from participating in the 33rd SEA Games. However, this idea was met with opposition from the SEA Games Council, because this organization and the host country Thailand do not have the authority to ban any country from participating in the 33rd SEA Games, as it violates the Olympic Charter.

Recently, Mr. Sorawong Thienthong once again pushed the intention to ban Cambodian sports from participating in the 33rd SEA Games by sending a letter to the SEA Games Council and expressing many concerns, the biggest of which is the safety and security of the congress. "Mr. Surawong Thienthong emphasized that although the principle of separating sports from politics is still maintained, the situation has "gone beyond the scope of politics". He also affirmed that this issue will be seriously discussed at the meeting of the SEA Games Council taking place from August 19 to 21," according to Thairath newspaper on August 6.

The 33rd SEA Games will take place from December 9 to 20 in three major cities: Bangkok, Chonburi and Songkhla. The host sports delegation of Thailand has announced the number of participants to be up to 2,134 (including athletes, coaches, officials, etc.), followed by Malaysia with 1,824 people, Singapore with 1,973 people and the Vietnamese sports delegation with about 860 people. The Cambodian delegation was previously expected to have 1,515 participants, but now there is news that it has been reduced to only 57 athletes. However, Secretary General of the Cambodian Olympic Committee Vath Chamroeun has denied this information and said that they are waiting for the situation before making an official decision, including participation and the number of athletes.

Thailand aims to win 40% of total gold medals

According to the Thai press, the country's sports will aim to regain the No. 1 position on the medal rankings at the 33rd SEA Games, after two editions in 2021 and 2023, both of which were behind the Vietnamese sports delegation. Accordingly, Thailand strives to win 234 gold medals at this sports event.

At the 33rd SEA Games, a total of 574 gold medals were distributed across 50 sports. Thus, the target of Thai sports accounted for 40% of the total gold medals, including a full set of 4 gold medals in men's, women's and futsal football.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/doi-hoi-vo-ly-cua-thai-lan-bi-phan-doi-manh-me-sea-games-33-nong-tu-ngay-bay-gio-185250806214010242.htm