SEA Games to open in Thailand with tightened security following border clashes

[BANGKOK] The SEA Games officially open in Bangkok on Tuesday (Dec 9), with tighter security for athletes due to fresh border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia.

The SEA Games run until Dec 20 in Bangkok and the nearby coastal province of Chonburi, with thousands of athletes from 11 South-east Asian countries competing in events ranging from football and fencing to combat sports.

They include Olympic weightlifting gold medallists Hidilyn Diaz of the Philippines and Rizki Juniansyah of Indonesia, and Thailand’s badminton silver medallist Kunlavut Vitidsarn.

Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida are scheduled to open the SEA Games’ ceremony at the Rajamangala National Stadium in Bangkok on Tuesday evening, with a performance by South Korea-trained Thai artist BamBam.

Meanwhile, renewed combat this week over a long-standing border dispute has hung a pall over the competition.

Border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia has killed six Cambodian civilians and three Thai soldiers, and wounded more than 20 others.

Citing safety concerns, Cambodia withdrew about half of its athletes in November, pulling out of eight events including football, wrestling and karate.

Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister Thammanat Prompao said on Tuesday that Thailand will “ensure the highest level of security” for Cambodian athletes during the ongoing border tensions.

Security personnel will be deployed to guarantee their safety, he said, though specific operational details were not disclosed.

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Thailand is hosting the SEA Games, which take place every two years, for the first time since 2007. They were first held in Bangkok in 1959.

The SEA Games are known for their inclusion of non-Olympic sports from the region such sepak takraw, foot volleyball played with a rattan ball, and pencak silat, a martial art popular in Indonesia. AFP