SEA Games: Coming-out party ends 44-year wait for Myanmar

SEA Games: Coming-out party ends 44-year wait for Myanmar

NAYPYIDAW - The SEA Games returned to Myanmar last night after a 44-year wait, as Naypyidaw celebrated with an opening ceremony that both showcased the nation's rich 900-year heritage and transformation from reclusive state to an emerging nation.

As 6,000 of ASEAN's best athletes strode into the spanking-new Wunna Theikdi Stadium, Myanmar let out a roaring welcome as the cheers of a 30,000-strong crowd reverberated around the arena.

More than 8,000 performers turned the stadium into a spectacle of lights and colour.

But the loudest cheers were saved for Myanmar archer Maung Wai Lin Tun, who, with a flaming arrow, lit the Games cauldron and shot his country into a new and exciting chapter. It echoed the common sentiment that this Games represent Myanmar's "coming-out" party as it moves out of a decades-long junta rule.

Last night, in front of President Thein Sein, who has led Myanmar's reform, Vice-Premier Nyan Tun declared the Games open, the first time it has hosted a sports event of such scale since 1969, when the Games were still known as the South-east Asian Peninsular Games.

Hosting this time round has proved to be a massive undertaking. The government had reportedly approved about US$400 million (S$500 million) in spending for the multi-sports event.

It has sought the help of close political ally China, which had also capped its own international re-emergence with the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

The Asian superpower has offered nearly US$33 million in technical assistance. It included construction of the massive Wunna Theikdi sports complex - which comprises an outdoor stadium, three indoor arenas and an aquatic complex - as well as organisation of the opening and closing ceremonies.

Said Myanmar presidential spokesman Ye Htut: "The Chinese also trained 200 of our athletes on their soil, and they have sent two dozen sports coaches to help us improve our level."

It was no surprise then, that China Vice-Premier Liu Yandong, who is in Naypyidaw for a two-day visit, was at the opening ceremony.

Last night's extravaganza was a mix of old and new - traditional Myanmar music was performed with much gusto while lighting and visual treats across a 110m-long LED screen dazzled the audience.

Singapore, which will be hosting the next Games in 2015, was the seventh nation to enter the stadium, with sprinter Dipna Lim-Prasad holding the nation's flag aloft.

The contingent was cheered on by Acting Minister of Culture, Community and Youth, Lawrence Wong, who had arrived in Naypyidaw yesterday morning.

When the competitions officially begin today, most will be held in Naypyidaw, with Yangon, Mandalay and the seaside town of Ngwe Saung hosting the others.

Myanmar has already been dominant in the sports held before the opening ceremony, garnering 18 golds, eight silvers and 10 bronzes to sit pretty at the top of the medal tally.

But the crowds at the Naypyidaw competitions remain worryingly thin, with most arenas less than half-filled even when tickets were given out.

Myanmar will be showcasing more than 1,000 athletes as it targets 100 golds. A total of 460 golds will be contested by the time the Games close on Dec 22.

The host nation will hope that last night's spectacle will entice more to turn up to catch the action.

hankeong@sph.com.sg


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