Cambodia pulls out of hosting 2023 SEA Games: Report

Cambodia has pulled out of hosting the 2023 SEA Games due to “budgetary constraints imposed upon the government by ambitious infrastructure projects”, according to a report from the Khmer Times.

The report on Tuesday (24 Oct) also quoted Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen, who said that the government is focusing on infrastructure projects instead of hosting the games.

“The government is trying to save money,” said the prime minister in the report. “I do not want to host the SEA Games.

“If we want to host the SEA Games, we have to spend millions to make venues for the sports and for athletes to stay, and we’d rather put that money toward building more bridges and roads.”

Hun Sen also said that the country badly needs better roads and more bridges to make travel easier for its citizens.

It is a stark contrast to what has been previously reported. Just in April this year, the Phnom Penh Post reported that the prime minister presided over a groundbreaking ceremony as construction began for the Morodok Techo National Sports Complex.

The complex, which was built with funding from China, is capable of accommodating 55,000 to 60,000 spectators. Hun Sen had also said that the stadium will serve “as a main venue for Cambodia to host the SEA Games in 2023 and other international sports events”. The 2023 SEA Games would have been Cambodia’s inaugural hosting of the multi-sport event.

It is not the first time that a country has backed out of hosting the biennial games.

Earlier this year, Philippines withdrew from hosting the 2019 SEA Games, citing the need to channel funds towards the high cost of rebuilding Marawi. The decision was eventually reversed following a committee meeting by the SEA Games Federation during the 2017 SEA Games in Kuala Lumpur, with officials claiming that there was a “miscommunication”.

The 2021 SEA Games will be hosted by Vietnam.