Arya News - The National Olympic Committee of Cambodia thanked the Games` organisers for their hospitality and will coordinate with the Southeast Asian Games Federation for the departure logistics of the 137-member team.
SINGAPORE – Cambodia on Dec 10 withdrew its entire delegation from the ongoing SEA Games in Thailand, citing serious safety concerns and urgent pleas from athletes’ families for their return.
The withdrawal was formalised in a letter from National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (NOCC) secretary-general Vath Chamroeun to South-east Asian Games Federation (SEAGF) chief executive officer Chaiyapak Siriwat, reportedly sent at 10.30am the same day. The letter did not specify the nature of the safety concerns, but its withdrawal comes amid concerns over escalating tensions at the border with Thailand .
“Due to serious concerns and requests from the families of our athletes to have their relatives return home immediately, NOCC must withdraw all of our delegation and arrange for their prompt return to Cambodia for safety reasons,” wrote Mr Chamroeun.
He added that the decision was not made lightly, and expressed his appreciation for the “hospitality, warmth and spirit of sportsmanship extended to our athletes” by the Games organisers.
He said that the NOCC would coordinate with the SEAGF to manage departure logistics.
Cambodia’s contingent of 110 athletes had been registered to participate in 13 sports at the Dec 9-20 Games, after pulling out of eight sports, including football and volleyball, in November.
The Cambodian contingent had attended the opening ceremony in Bangkok on Dec 9, and was slated to compete in swimming, gymnastics and martial arts events on Dec 10.
While the organisers had increased security measures at hotels, training venues, competition sites and during travel, the families of Cambodian athletes at the Games were concerned after learning the uniforms of the Cambodian contingent were being investigated by the Thai authorities, The Phnom Penh Post reported.
The matter surfaced after Thai social media users noted that the uniforms featured the logo of a well-known Cambodian casino company, Nagaworld.
Thai news outlet Khaosod English had reported on Dec 9 that the Sports Authority of Thailand and the Ministry of Interior would look into whether the display constituted advertising, and that casinos are banned in Thailand.
The Phnom Penh Post reported that the casino’s logo had been used on the Cambodian national team’s uniform “many times” in major sporting events, including other editions of the SEA Games, and the Olympic Games, without incident.
According to the Cambodian news outlet, the “incident has led the Cambodian public to view Thailand’s actions as ill-intentioned, seemingly attempting to find fault with Cambodia and politicise sports to undermine Cambodia’s image on the international stage”.
Cambodia withdrew from the first South-east Asian Peninsular Games – the pre-cursor to the SEA Games – in 1959, due to political tensions with Thailand, according to a journal article published by the Cambridge University Press.
It was then supposed to host the Games in 1963, but cancelled it owing to the domestic political situation, and skipped nine editions from 1967 to 1993, including the 1993 one in Singapore. It has been ever-present since – including hosting the last edition in Phnom Penh in 2023.
Relations between Thailand and Cambodia have been strained since military clashes broke out along the two neighbours’ border . More than 40 people were killed during five days of fighting in July.
A ceasefire, brokered in Kuala Lumpur in October, was halted in November after a landmine blast injured Thai soldiers .
Tensions spiked again on Dec 7 following reports of gunfire exchanged between Cambodian and Thai troops along the countries’ northeastern border.