Sea Games: No special privileges for Paralympic athletes - SEAGF

No special privileges will be accorded to Paralympic athletes who wished to compete in the 2017 Kuala Lumpur SEA Games said SEA Games Federation (SEAGF) president Tan Sri Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja'afar.

Paralympic athletes who compete in the SEA Games would not be allowed to seek for special privileges or 'extras' such as using special equipment and care, to avoid having an advantage.

The SEAGF executive meeting on Tuesday rejected Singapore's proposal to allow the country's paralympic archer to have specific advantages while competing in the SEA Games.

"The matter was discussed in the meeting and SEAGF did not approve the request. The ASEAN Para Games is only two weeks after the SEA Games, so the para athletes will have an opportunity to showcase their talent.

"Secondly, we don't want to set a precedence. This is to avoid them having an advantage because we must be fair to able bodied athletes," he told reporters after chairing the SEAGF Executive Committee Meeting here, Tuesday.

It is learnt that Singapore's 31-year-old para archer, Syahidah Alim who has cerebral palsy was keen to compete in the SEA Games just like 2016 Rio Paralympics gold medalists Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli (shot put) and Abdul Latif Romly (long jump) from Malaysia.

"There's no problem or issue if a para athlete wants to participate as long as they can compete with other abled bodied athletes with the basic conditions of the SEA Games," Tunku Imran, who is also the Olympic Council of Malaysia president said.

Cambodia were the only country that did not attend the meeting today since the country's National Olympic Committee are having their annual general assembly (AGM).

The meeting also approved the establishment of an Ad-Hoc Arbitration Panel to decide legal disputes arising during the SEA Games and the formation of a Broadcasting Commission to ensure the parties involved can share the take from the investment they have made as well as to ensure better broadcasting.

"This is the first time an arbitration panel was established for SEA Games after the SEAGF approved it during the Singapore edition. The role is to solve and make decisions on disputes immediately, probably in 24 hours, just like in Olympics, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games and will only be in service for the Games," he said.

The panel to be administered by the KL Regional Centre for Arbitration (KLRCA), consists of three members from Malaysia, one each from Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam as well as other independent members.

The 29th SEA Games is scheduled from Aug 19-31 while ASEAN Para Games takes place from Sept 17-23.

When asked about a proposal to bid for the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Tunku Imran said OCM will only start working on it after getting the consent from the government.

"The decision must come from the government. If the government decides to host, we will do the presentation and other works. But I am confident we can organise it in an inexpensive way, with value for money," he said.

Last Monday, the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) had stripped the rights to stage the 2022 Commonwealth Games from Durban in South Africa following a series of missed deadlines and financial problems. -- Bernama