Artists are training to prepare for the SEA Games 31 opening ceremony at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi on May 12. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – Hanoi has completed preparations for the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) and everything is in place for the region’sbiggest sporting event.
Atthe coming Games, Hanoi will host 18 sports at 16 venues, including 12 venuesmanaged by district-level authorities, three by the municipal Department ofCulture and Sports, one by a business, and four by central agencies.
Asof March 31, upgrades and repairs at a total cost of 618.7 billion VND (26.9million USD) for competition venues and training facilities had been completed.The installation of new competition equipment as well as decorations for theGames have also been completed.
The capital city was assigned to coordinate with the Ministry of Culture,Sports and Tourism to organise the opening and closing ceremonies, and artistshave been training hard since April 1 to prepare. Besides, Hanoi has workedwith Vietnam Television to produce a special video clip to be screened at theopening.
The municipal Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union has alsorecruited and provided training for 3,000 volunteers who will work atcompetition venues.
The Vietnam Sports Administration recently signed memoranda of understandingwith 14 hotels based in Hanoi. The municipal Tourism Department has coordinatedwith the sub-committee for logistics and public services to open trainingcourses for local travel and accommodation facilities to ensure the bestservices for visiting delegations.
Whilethe Hanoi Power Corporation has readied plans to guarantee power supply throughout the Games, the city’s centre for disease control, the food safetysub-department, hospitals, and healthcare centres have also been gearing upanti-COVID-19 measures and medical response at hotels and competition venues.
Inaddition, the Department of Public Security is working to ensure security andsafety for SEA Games 31. The Hanoi Capital High Command is also coordinatingwith local police to prepare plans and personnel for duties during theoccasion.
Themunicipal Department of Transport has also made plans to keep traffic flowing.
Authoritiesare encouraging local residents to adopt civilised behaviours so as tointroduce Hanoi as an attractive, safe, and hospitable destination to foreignvisitors during the event.
Theadministration issued marketing plans under which relevant agencies have workedwith Vietnam Television, the Hanoi Radio and Television Station, and othermedia outlets to produce and broadcast videos and documentaries about the localculture, tourism, and people on tourism websites, TV channels, social networks,and CNN International.
Hanoi has had 68 coaches and 248 athletes called up to the national team in 30sports, accounting for 26.22 percent of the coaches and athletes in theVietnamese delegation. It is aiming to contribute to more than 30 percent ofVietnam’s medals at SEA Games 31.
Themed“For a Stronger Southeast Asia”, SEA Games 31 will feature 40 sports and isscheduled to take place in Hanoi and 11 nearby localities from May 12 to 23.
The biennial Games was initially slated for late 2021 but delayed due to the COVID-19pandemic.
Thisis the second time Vietnam has hosted a SEA Games, after the first in 2003./.
