PHNOM PENH: Prime Minister Hun Sen has ordered for a special aircraft to be arranged to transport Cambodian ASEAN Para Games athletes to participate in the 11th ASEAN Para Games in Surakarta, Indonesia.
Speaking at a meeting with a delegation from the ASEAN Para Games on Wednesday morning, 6 July, Prime Minister Hun Sen said that the special aircraft to transport Cambodian athletes to participate in the ASEAN Para Games is to facilitate travel for the players and not cause extra fatigue from having to go through many transfers. The Prime Minister said that the money allocated for the purchase of plane tickets will be diverted to pay for the plane rental instead.
Sky Angkor, however, has agreed to transport Cambodian players to and from Indonesia free of charge. According to the stated plan, Cambodia's ASEAN Para Games athletes will travel to Indonesia on 26 July and return on 7 August.
The Prime Minister remarked, "Our Khmer people are like this, they know how to help."
Cambodia is sending 115 athletes to compete in 11 different sporting categories: table tennis, weightlifting, athletics, swimming, sitting volleyball for men and women, goalball, football 7-a-side, wheelchair basketball, boccia, badminton, and chess.
Some of the players have shown they are confident in the run up to the games.
“I have 90% confidence in getting my medal back because my training is complete," said 38-year-old wheelchair athlete, Chhun Ponn.
Seang Sokchan, the coach for the women's wheelchair basketball team, said, “The strength of the Cambodian wheelchair basketball [team] is that they have good communication, perseverance, and even though they have not won in the past, they have won the hearts of the players from other countries who admire us. Going to the tournament in Indonesia, [we have] 80 percent confidence [in winning], but we will do our best to bring the medal back to our nation."
36-year-old wheelchair basketball player, Ou Phalla, said "I went to Myanmar and won a bronze medal, in Malaysia I won a silver medal, and in the Philippines, because of Covid-19, I missed the match. My team used to play with Indonesia’s [team], I know what to expect. There are some new countries participating, and after a few years apart, they practiced, but I also practiced, so there is still hope! Of the three medals, I will bring one back for the nation.”
Attending the ASEAN Para Games this time, Cambodia is not only a participating country but also the next country to host the 12th ASEAN Para Games in 2023. The President of the Union of Youth Federations of Cambodia, Hun Many, will lead the delegation to receive the ASEAN Para Games flag to bring back to Cambodia.
Prime Minister Hun Sen has reminded all players that they are competing in the games as national representatives, so they should not violate any conditions or rules of the sport in a way that could affect the national image.
"Gold medal or silver medal or no medal does not matter, but destruction through the use of banned substances is the destruction of the face of our country," he said. "All the medals that the whole group receives will not be enough to compensate for the damage caused by the use of drugs or banned substances in sports."
The Prime Minister has wished all Cambodian para games players success and has encouraged them to get the Covid-19 vaccine as required before leaving for the competition.
