Vietnam ’s capital city Hanoi won the race to host the 18th Asian Games in 2019 (ASIAD 2019), according to Olympic Council of Asia (OCA).

The OCA stated after a meeting in China ’s Macau Special Administrative Region that Hanoi beat Indonesia 's second biggest city Surabaya for the right to stage ASIAD 2019 after Dubai in the United Arab Emirates pulled out at the last minute.

"The majority of the votes are for the city of Hanoi to hold the 2019 Asian
Games," OCA President Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah was quoted as saying at a press conference.

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Hoang Anh Tuan, said the Vietnamese Government and people are eager for the event, which is expected to help the beautiful country and its hospitable people get closer to international friends, thus strengthening the friendship between Vietnam and other countries.

It is estimated that the 18th Asian Games will cost some 150 million USD as 80 percent of the required venues have been built and only needs to be upgraded to meet international standards.

ASIAD 18 is scheduled for November 2019 and will last 16 days.

The 17 th Asian Games will be held in Incheon, the Republic of Korea , in 2014.-VNA