Brunei Darussalam favorite to host 1999 SEA Games

JAKARTA (JP): Brunei Darussalam is likely to host the next SEA Games in 1999, a National Sports Council official said yesterday.

The official, who requested anonymity, said the SEA Games Federation had sent a letter to Brunei asking it to host the event. Brunei has not yet responded.

The official said Brunei was encouraged to stage the biennial event by those attending the last SEA Games Federation council meeting here in July 1996.

Only five of the 10 participating countries have staged the Games since they began in 1959. They are Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam have not hosted the event.

"Brunei should have staged this year's event. It refused because it could not accommodate enough athletes and it doesn't have proper sports facilities," the official said.

"We're optimistic that Brunei can stage the 20th Games although it may only feature 20 sports and accommodate 3,000 athletes," he said.

After Brunei refused to host this year's Games, Cambodia was next in line but it also refused.

Indonesia, which had twice hosted the Games, then agreed to host this year's 19th Games.

The next Games' host will be announced at the next council meeting here in June.

On other Games news, the official said Thailand's representative at an executive council meeting here last October, Santiparb Tejavanija, had delivered a message from Thailand's Marshall Dawee to the meeting that the council should honor two of its members, S.S. Dhilon and Gen. Charouck Arirachakaran.

Dawee, a former SEA Games Federation chairman, passed away before delivering the message.

The council will give a SEA Games Federation Order of Merit to Dhillon of Singapore for his 25-year service to the federation.

It will also make Gen. Charouck of Thailand an Honorary Member of the federation. (yan)