The Vietnamese contingent enters the Opening Ceremony at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium during the 2017 ASEAN Para Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. AFP/VNA Photo

HÀ NỘI — Indonesia will organise the 11th ASEAN Para Games that Việt Nam cancelled several months ago.

The regional competition for athletes with disabilities is usually organised after the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games by the same host country.

The 31st SEA Games and 11th Para Games were initially planned in December 2021 in Việt Nam. But due to pandemic, Việt Nam delayed the first to this month and will not hold the latter event.

ASEAN Para Sports Federation (APSF) held a meeting early this week with the participation of 10 member countries.

APSF officially awarded Solo, Indonesia, the job of hosting the 11th Para Games from July 23-30.

“After careful deliberation and consideration, the majority of the board reached a decision to officially award Indonesia the hosting job following a decision by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to remove Indonesia from its non-compliance list earlier this month,” said APSF Board of Governors Chairman Yi Veasna.

Prior to this, the National Doping Agency of Indonesia was put on the noncompliance list due to what WADA described as “non-conformities in implementing an effective testing program,” which resulted in the nation being barred from hosting any international sporting events or Games.

As many as 14 sports have been proposed: archery, athletics, badminton, boccia, Cerebral Palsy football, chess, goalball, judo, powerlifting, table tennis, swimming, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair tennis and sitting volleyball.

Veasna urged all member countries to come together in one voice and support the Games by sending their contingents and providing ASEAN athletes with the opportunity to compete in regional Games following a four-year lull since the last Games in Kuala Lumpur in 2017.

“It’s important for us to move forward in one voice as our main priority is to ensure that the Games remain relevant to the ASEAN Paralympic fraternity in many more years to come,” he said.

Solo hosted the sixth edition of the ASEAN Para Games in 2011, where 11 sports were contested.

The Việt Nam Paralympic Committee has asked the Việt Nam Sports Administration to organise training courses for local athletes to prepare for the Games.

In the previous Para Games in 2017 in Malaysia, Indonesia topped the ranking, followed by Malaysia and Thailand.

Việt Nam placed fourth. — VNS