KBS to give priority to welfare of athletes in Cambodia

KUALA LUMPUR - The Youth and Sports Ministry (KBS) has assured that it will prioritise the welfare of national athletes competing in the 2023 Cambodia SEA Games in Phnom Penh from May 5-17.

Its Minister, Hannah Yeoh said the Malaysian contingent secretariat and the National Sports Council (NSC) had been instructed to take appropriate measures to address any issues that crop up in Cambodia to ensure the athletes’ performances are not affected.

"One of the issues is the athletes’ accommodation as the Games village is still not completed.

"This has resulted in some of the national athletes having to stay in hotels in Phnom Penh, which may lead to other problems like the supply of halal food for Muslim athletes,” she told a media conference after handing over the Jalur Gemilang to the SEA Games contingent at the NSC, here, today.

She said that, based on preliminary information from the Malaysian contingent secretariat in Cambodia, other concerns involved traffic congestion from the athletes’ accommodation to competition venues.

"The weather in Cambodia is also quite hot and it is also dusty there,” she said, adding that the National Sports Institute (NSI) had issued reminders to the athletes, in addition to guidelines and advice, to be complied with during their stay in Cambodia.

The Malaysian contingent comprises 677 athletes - 402 men and 275 women - and, of the total, 440 or 65 per cent of them will be making their debut in the biennial Games. - BERNAMA