Sarawak preparing for hosting job, selective on Kuala Lumpur Games next year
KUCHING: Sarawak will not be competing in all 19 Optional Sports at the 16th Malaysia Games (Sukma) in Kuala Lumpur next year.
Some of these sports such as Woodball, Muay Thai, Mendayung and Equestrian were considered totally new to the state, said Social Development Minister Tan Sri William Mawan Ikom when delivering his winding up speech at the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting here yesterday.
However, the State Sports Council (MSNS) will soon identify all the sports to be participated by its contingent at the games to be held at Bukit Jalil from June 28 till July 7 next year.
In preparation to host Sukma 2016, Mawan who is also a Senior Minister said that his Ministry has formed three focus groups tasked to look into areas such as the construction, provision and upgrading of sport facilities and equipment; the development of technical experts and support, and the preparation and development of state athletes.
“In preparation for Sukma 2016, my Ministry will be gearing towards building new sports facilities of international standard besides upgrading of existing ones. The Sarawak Sports Complex at Petra Jaya, Kuching has been identified as a venue to host the Malaysia Games.
“In this connection, workshops involving participation of relevant parties such as sports agencies and associations including venue providers were organised to identify gaps and areas for improvement to meet the required standard of Sukma,” he continued.
The Pakan assemblyman added that the facilities at the sports complex were well utilised by the public and have generated a total collection of RM366,000 and RM344,000 in 2011 and 2012 respectively.
As the complex continues to host events and activities all year round, the government has embarked on upgrading the physical conditions of the stadium.
Apart from Sukma, the state will also be participating in the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East-ASEAN Growth Area (BIMB-EAGA) Games and the Borneo Games.
In the 2012 Sukma held recently at Kuantan, Pahang, the state achieved a commendable fourth placing with 42 gold, 32 silver and 38 bronze medal haul.
Mawan mentioned that the state had managed to achieve its target to be one of the top five once again thanks to the spirit of ‘Agi Idup Agi Ngelaban’ amongst its athletes.
On another note, Mawan announced that his Ministry will be organising a Penan Sports Meet in the Miri Division next year.
It will showcase the various unique sport played by the Penan which may not be known to people outside the community.