At a government meeting on July 9, Hanoi was selected to host the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31), which will take place between October and December 2021.
The event, which will last for 17 days, is expected to attract 16,000 participants. The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST) created the proposal for Vietnam to host the games, Vietnam Plus reports.
Previously, Cambodia had been chosen to hold the games, but the country chose to defer and is now scheduled to host the 32nd Games in 2023.
“Hanoi needs to utilize its current infrastructure, limit its number of new constructions and purchases and, above all, make plans that are as inexpensive and efficient as possible,” stated Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the subject, as reported by Zing.
The capital already has experience in organizing international sporting events, having hosted SEA Games 22 in 2003 and the Asian Indoor Games in 2009. My Dinh Sports Complex, built for the Games in 2003 and renovated in 2016, is likely to be used again in 2021, claims Thanh Nien.
The total expenditure for SEA Games 31, based on the aforementioned proposal, amounts to VND1.74 trillion (US$75 million).
[Photo via Tin Nong The Thao]
