A total of 43 sports will be contested at the 34th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, which will be held in Malaysia from Sept 18-29 next year, after kabaddi, dance sport, teqball, padel, and ice hockey were added to the programme.
Speaking after the meeting hosted by the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) and the Southeast Asian Games Federation (SEAGF) in Kuala Lumpur, Chaiyapak Siriwat, vice-president of the National Olympic Committee of Thailand (NOCT), said that the main issue at the meeting was the consideration of adding more sports to the 34th SEA Games, from the originally planned 38 sports.
"The Sports and Rules Committee considered appeals from the National Olympic Committees of all 11 member countries, which proposed a total of 30 sports. After consideration, the meeting approved the addition of five sports, namely kabaddi, dance sport, teqball, padel and ice hockey," he said.
Chaiyapak, who is also vice-chairman of the SEAGF executive board, added that two more events under existing sports including chinlone (sepak takraw) and polo (equestrian) have also been approved.
"Regarding the proposal to include cheerleading and air badminton as demonstration sports, the SEAGF acknowledged the proposal and will consider it at a later date," he said.
Chaiyapak added that another important issue considered was the proposal for rest periods to allow athletes to drink water during competitions, to promote athlete well-being and safety, especially in the hot and humid climate of Southeast Asia.
"Implementation will be in accordance with the technical requirements of each sport, as specified in the technical manual and competition rules," he said.
