KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 — The Asean Para Games (APG) 2020 has postponed for the third time, now set to be held from Oct 3-9, due to the Covid-19 global pandemic.
The decision was taken by the Asean Para Sports Federation (APSF) Board of Governors (BoG), during its emergency meeting via video conference to deliberate on the status of the 10th edition to be held in the Philippines.
The Board had also agreed to convene another meeting at the end of July, to assess the virus situation before confirming and proceeding with the proposed new dates for the Games, its secretary Major General Osoth Bhavilai said.
“The dates serve as the new target dates for the APG to help the Philippines Asean Para Games Organising Committee (PHILAPGOC) with the necessary arrangement and preparation. The dates was agreed with conditions that the Covid-19 pandemic is put under control and no longer a threat to human.
“This is to adhere to the regulation that the host notifies APSF at least 60 days before the commencement of the Games to allow time for the APSF Coordination Committee to inspect Games facilities and the host’s readiness,” he said in a statement.
The two-hour video conference was participated by National Paralympic Committee Presidents and alternates of Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, while Myanmar and Brunei were not represented for unknown reasons.
He added: “The federation (is) strictly adhering to the guidelines and preventive measures stipulated by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and health authorities to help contain the pandemic in the respective Asean nations to protect the health, welfare and safety of all participating athletes, officials and contingents.”
The APG was supposed to be held from January 18-24, then postponed to March 20-28 due to budget and logistics issues on the part of the organisers, before being postponed yet again as a result of the Covid-19 situation. — Bernama
