Snowdan (fifth right) interacts with some of the athletes who will be competing in the upcoming Suksar.
KUCHING: The QR Code or Quick Response system, which is expected to be used in the Sukan Sarawak (SukSar), aims to facilitate the managing and monitoring of the 1,000 athletes competing in the games from Dec 14-17.
This was disclosed by Sarawak Sports Corporation (SSC) chief executive officer Dr Ong Kong Swee who expressed hope for the system to be successful and for the challenges that may be faced in its implementation to be overcome along the way.
Its implementation is made possible due to the close collaboration between SSC, State’s Service Modernisation Unit (UPPN) and Sarawak Information System Sdn Bhd (SAINS), utilising the latest digital information technology commonly used today.
The system will cover all the 1,000 athletes and their coaches as well as technical officials and technical volunteers whose movements and attendance are recorded throughout the SukSar venues in Kuching and Kota Samarahan.
Previously, the organising committee chairman of SukSar Datuk Snowdan Lawan, who is the Assistant Minister of Youth and Sports, had announced the implementation of the Online Integrated Management System (IGMS) which is aimed at managing the database of athletes and their performance in a more systematic way.
The use of these systems means that Sarawak is emerging as a pioneer in the use of digital information technology especially in organising the large-scale multi-sporting events. Moreover, the IGMS system can be re-used in future editions of SukSar.
The system is also aimed at mitigating potential problems related to the safety and well-being of athletes at the SukSar Sports Village based in Rafflesia College of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas), Kota Samarahan.
All athletes are required to scan their identity tags with their own QR code before leaving the sports village and reporting to their respective hostels after competitions.
The procedure is expected to be used at the competition venues as well because it can ensure that the identities of the participating athletes is guaranteed.
During the Celcom Axiata Malaysia Open badminton championship at the Sarawak Indoor Stadium, Petra Jaya from April 4-9 this year, both SSC together with Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) had used a barcode system to monitor and keep track on thousands of spectators who came from all over the country and overseas.
Such initiatives were proven successful in the prevention of double entries into the stadium and use of counterfeit tickets in view of the hot selling tickets which were already sold out even before the badminton event started on April 4.