Sukma 2022 brought forward two weeks, to begin on Malaysia Day

PUTRAJAYA: The 20th Malaysia Games (Sukma) has been brought forward two weeks and will be held from Sept 16-24, in conjunction with the Malaysia Day celebration, followed by the Para Sukma from Nov 1-6 in the Klang Valley.

This follows the postponement of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games previously scheduled for Sept 10-25, allowing the organisers to use public university facilities for the placement of athletes during the semester break.

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu said the Sukma Supreme Committee meeting today also agreed to hold 31 types of sports and 445 events for this edition, organised by the National Sports Council (MSN).

He said the committee also decided to reduce the minimum participation to six states compared to eight states (only for the 2022 edition) for each event, with the registration date extended till June 30.

"Don't expect fireworks and concerts. I hope its (Sukma) liveliness is more due to the sporting performance itself.

"In terms of the age limit, special permission has been given this time for those above 23, taking into account the athletes who had been preparing for a long time for Sukma which should have been held in 2020 (before being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)," he said during a press conference at Menara KBS, today.

Meanwhile, Ahmad Faizal said almost all the venues for the event had been identified, except for sailing, which would be held either in Langkawi or Port Dickson due to clashes with other events.

Earlier, national badminton legend Datuk Lee Chong Wei along with shooting athlete Johnathan Wong, squash ace S. Sivasangari and sprinter Azreen Nabila Alias launched the '100 Days to Sukma XX' event at Menara KBS.

The event also saw the launch of the 2022 Sukma and Para Sukma logos, as well as the Games' tiger mascot named 'Oyen' and the official song, 'Demi Malaysia'.

A total of 10,000 athletes and officials are expected to participate in the Games this time, which was originally scheduled from Sept 29 to Oct 8.

-- BERNAMA