The Lao National Sports Committee (LNSC) has invited medallists from sports at the eighth National Games in Champassak province last December to join national teams for the upcoming SEA Games.
The national games were used to select the best athletes to prepare for the 25th SEA Games to be held in Vientiane from December 9-18.
Teams have been training at the National Sports Training Centre and in neighbouring countries in preparation for the games.
The national games yielded 234 gold, 233 silver and 351 bronze medallists from Vientiane , 16 provinces and 10 ministries.
The LNSC did not select unsuccessful athletes or those with a record of bad behaviour or disrespect for the rules of sporting committees and federations.
Ms Nouny Soukpaseuth won a gold medal in the women's 4x400m, silver in the women's 3,000 metre and a bronze in the 1,500 metre in the track and field events at the national games where she represented Champassak province.
After her success she began training for both the track and field and cycling events for the SEA Games.
However, she has been ruled out of selection for the games. The Lao Amateur Athletics Federation's secretary general, Ms Phouxay Phengphong, said Ms Nouny was not selected for the national squad due to disrespect of the federation's rules.
Ms Nouny's younger sister, Ms Phonesanith, won a gold in the 25km and a silver in the 70km, as well as two bronze medals in team 30km and 70km cycling events at the national games.
Neither of the two sisters has been selected for the national cycling team to compete at the SEA Games.
The federation has selected a squad of 41 athletes, including substitutes, for the track and field events.
The LNSC has set a deadline of next month for all 11 countries competing in the games to submit a listing of their national squads.
The SEA Games will comprise athletics, swimming, diving, water polo, archery, badminton, billiards and snooker, boxing, cycling, football, golf, judo, karatedo, sepak takraw, shooting, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, volleyball and beach volleyball, weight lifting, wrestling, wushu, muay, pencak silat, petanque, fin swimming and shuttlecock.
The eighth National Games consisted of track and field, swimming, volleyball, basketball, football, table tennis, badminton, tennis, sepak takraw, petanque, bowling, golf, snooker, shooting, top spinning, crossbow, sport boat racing, muay lao, boxing, pencak silat, taekwondo, judo, karatedo and cycling.
By Sangkhomsay Bubphanouvong
Vientianetimes
