25th SEA Games, Laos

Federations struggle to reach starting blocks

Many Lao sports federations still lack adequate funding to purchase equipment and prepare athletes for the 25th SEA Games, which will take place in Vientiane from December 9-18.

Federations are facing financial difficulties with their preparations but are trying to send as many athletes as possible to train at the Sports Training Centre in Sikeuth village, Naxaithong district, and other training facilities in Vientiane as well as sending athletes to train in neighbouring countries in the lead-up to the games.

At the Prime Minister's Office on Sunday, the Lao SEA Games Organising Committee (LAOSOC) and the Lao National Sports Committee (LNSC) held a meeting to discus preparations for the games.

The meeting was attended by Standing Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of LAOSOC, Mr Somsavat Lengsavad, LNSC President, Dr Phouthong Seng-akhom, along with federation presidents and senior officials from LNSC.

At the meeting each federation submitted funding proposals to the LNSC for the purchase of sporting equipment, financing to support athletes and other games preparations.

The LNSC currently has a budget of 7 billion kip to use in preparing athletes in 25 sports for the games.

Currently the tennis, golf, karatedo, judo, muay lao and taekwondo federations are sponsored by various companies, including some international organisations.

There are still many federations looking for sponsors to support their teams, such as the national women's football team which lacks the funding to enable it to compete at an international level.

The Lao Cycling Federation is another body urgently seeking funding to help riders prepare for the games.

Mr Somsavat said the federations would like to help athletes when they have difficulties with their education and families.

He said the federations are doing their best to prepare athletes for the event and enable them to win medals.

The national sepak takraw squad is currently training in Savannakhet province but plans to move to train at the indoor stadium at Lao-ITECC in Vientiane in October.

The sepak takraw federation will host the SEA Games' sepak takraw event at Lao-ITECC and has a medical team preparing alongside the national team.

On Sunday officials from LAOSOC and LNSC also visited athletes' accommodation facilities and the Sports Training Centre.

The 25th SEA Games will consist of events in athletics, swimming, diving, water polo, archery, badminton, billiards and snooker, boxing, cycling, football, golf, judo, karatedo, sepak takraw, shooting, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis, volleyball, beach volleyball, weightlifting, wrestling, wushu, muay, pencak silat, petanque, fin swimming and shuttlecock.

By Sangkhomsay Bubphanouvong
Vientianetimes

(KPL) The Hong Thong Development Project (or Night Bazaar)would be operational on a round the clock basis to serve the tourists, commencing from the later part of the year and the purpose of this kind of operational hours is to attract more tourists to Vientiane capital.

This project, presently under construction, is located in Chanthaboury district, in front of Lao National Stadium.

President of Hong Thong Development Project, Mr Khamphay Somsana said that when the project was first proposed it was meant to serve the tourists and to offer them round the clock service.

Construction started in May 2008 and now 30 per cent of the building had been completed., the president of the project said.

“The project is part of Vientiane’s plan to generate more income to the city, especially to the business operators,” he said.

He added that the project would be opened as early as the opening day of the 25th Sea Games.

Funding for this project was made by four local investors, whose combined total investment was 25 billion kip and the authorities granted them a lease of 40 years, Mr Khamphay commented.

“We decided to construct the Night Bazaar because we found that the majority of tourists who visited Vientiane would not spend much time in it and as a result some of the Lao money goes to foreign countries,” said the president of Hong Thong Development Project.

The Night Bazaar would have 10,700 square metres of land, seven two-storey buildings, one restaurant, a public park and parking lot area, he
said.

The restaurant would offer a whole range of Lao food and the prices would be affordable, he added.

The handicraft products, he said would be on sale in the Night Bazaar in order to introduce to the foreign tourists the traditional culture of Laos and the products can be gifts to them, he said.

Photo: Lao children practice Karate inside the Budo center in Vientiane, Laos.

(KPL) Lao-Japan Budo Centre to be used for Karatedo and Judo competitions in the 25th Southeast Asian Games in Vientiane will be complete by this year’s end.

The centre is located on the land of former Chao Anou Secondary School near the old National Stadium, Chanthaboury district, Vientiane.This centre will comprise with one building of indoor stadium, which could receive up to 600 seats.

Head of International Sports Department and National Sports Committee Mr Soulasith Oupravanh last week said, “The Lao-Japan Budo Centre Construction Project is implemented with a financial grant from the Japanese Government, which is worth more than 600 million Japanese Yen. The construction started from October 2008 and 20 per cent of the work have been implemented so far.”

The centre is scheduled to complete September this year three months before the 25th SEA Games opening.

This sporting facilities will be used for not only karatedo and judo competitions but also for badminton, table tennis and trakaw competitions.

Phetchampa Advertising Co., Ltd. has been entrusted by the Lao 25th SEA Games Organising Committee (LAOSOC) to run the games' marketing programme.

The company held a workshop on Saturday in Vientiane to discuss marketing activities relating to the games. Laos will host the games in Vientiane from December 9-18, which will be sponsored by 11 companies from Laos and Thailand .

The workshop was attended by Phetchampa Advertising Co., Ltd. President and Chairman of the LAOSOC Marketing Sub-Committee, Mr Khammoui Keomany, and representatives from the sponsoring companies.

Sponsors include Lao Brewery Co. Ltd., Football Thai Factory Sporting Goods Co. Ltd., Lao Soft Drink Co. Ltd., PTT Public Co. Ltd., TOT Public, CAT Telecom Public, TRT Intertrade, Mikasa Industries (Thailand), TK Logistic and Supply Chain (Thailand), President Grand, and P and C World Class.

Mr Khammoui said some companies had already signed a marketing agreement and others would sign in the future.

The agreements mean the companies can set up booths in the sports complex and other sports venues during the games, and can advertise their products in the main stadium.

Vice Chairman of the 25th SEA Games Marketing Committee Sub-Committee, Dr Santiparb Tejavanija, said sponsors would be able to sell goods bearing the games' mascots Champa and Champi and pictures of That Luang.

The companies will also benefit from booths set up at the media centre and the attention they attract from Lao and foreign reporters.

Some 1,200 overseas personnel will report on the games, with 700 hours being allocated for TV broadcasting rights. There will be 390 events in 25 sports.

Phetchampa Advertising Co., Ltd. held a meeting in Vientiane on March 26 to discuss the live broadcasts on 16 television channels in seven countries.

Reports will be carried on Brunei radio and television, Lao National Radio and Lao National Television, Lao Star Channel, Forever Group Co., Ltd. (FRTB4-Myanmar), RTM from Malaysia and Media Corp TV Singapore Pte. Ltd. In Thailand , the games will be aired on the National Broadcasting Service of Thailand, TPBS, Channel 7, Channel 5, VTC Digital-Vietnam, VTV, TOT Co., Ltd, and CAT Telecom Co., Ltd.

Laos will use about 16 mobile broadcasting vans to cover all sports venues and will employ more than 144 people to work as cameramen and producers. The budget for the management of TV broadcasting is about 34 billion kip (US$4 million).

Vientianetimes

Photo: Top view of the Main stadium for the Opening ceremony of Vientiane Games 2009

If you want to get information about 25th SEA GAMES in Laos, you can contact the follow department:

Lao SEA Games Organizing Committee

Khouvieng Road, Ban Mixay, Chanthabouly District
Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR
P.O Box 3183
Tel&Fax: (+856-21) 214596
E-mail: seagames@laosoc.com

Secretariat Committee

Dr. Phouthong SENG AKHOM
Tel&Fax: (+856-21) 214596
Head Phone: (+856-20) 9801825
E-mail: secretariat@laosoc.com

Administration and Service Committee

Mr. Somphou PHONGSA
Tel&Fax: (+856-21) 214596
Head Phone: (+856-20) 9801825
E-mail: somphou@laosoc.com

Technical Committee

Mr. Phouvanh VONGSOUTHI
Tel&Fax: (+856-21) 253040
Head Phone : (+856-20) 9801199
E-mail: techc@laosoc.com, phouvanh@laosoc.com

(KPL) Ninety per cent of the construction work of the new sports stadium for the 25th SEA Games has been completed.

The next stage is to carry out the decoration work for this infrastructure.
This was reported during a meeting on the progress of the preparatory work on the Sea Games on 20 March, under the chairmanship of Standing Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad.

The sub-committees for organizing the Sea Games reported at the meeting that the inauguration and closing ceremonies of this sporting would be different
from the past Sea Games.

The Standing Deputy Prime Minister stressed on the policy of usage of local products at this coming sporting event and on the need to get the Lao national athletes to practice at the training centre after the Lao New Year.

He also said the financial sub-committee has approved 90 billion kip to fund other preparatory works.

For the senior sports officials, they would be accommodated in eleven standard hotels and 200 rooms had been set aside specially for them, said Mr Somsavat.

To ensure spectacular shows during the opening and closing ceremonies of this sports event, there will be 8,000 performers, and they would be rehearsing their sequences soon, said the Standing Deputy Prime Minister.

Last but not least, he asked all sub-committees to be conscientious, to complete their work on schedule and to take care of the welfare of the athletes.

VIENTIANE, March 23 (Bernama) -- The Muay Lao Federation last week has signed an agreement with the Lao Brewery Company (LBC), which company supported the federation's preparations for the 25th SEA Games 2009 in Vientiane, Lao news agency (KPL) reported Monday.

Vice President of the Lao National Sports Committee, Somphou Phongsa, who is also a member of the 25th SEA Games Organising Committee and the representative from LBC as well as the officials of both sides, attended the signing ceremony.

LBC has agreed to provide more than 41.5 million kip (US$5,000) to help the federation prepare athletes for the games, which will take place in Vientiane from 9-18 December.

Somphou, on behalf of the committee and federation, thanked LBC for supporting the Muay Lao team and other sports federations.

"The Muay Lao team is a major medal contender for the games and the federation and athletes will work hard towards success," he said. Muay Lao in the national sports of Laos, similar to Thai kickboxing.

LBC recently signed agreements to provide sporting equipment to the taekwondo, petanque and football federations for their preparations for the games.