Opening of National Games on HM’s Coronation Day
Excellencies, Ladies, and Gentlemen,
Today is a new historic event in the efforts of reforms in the sports sector. It is ushering in a new page in our history, in which we all are working together to raise high once again our sports sector. Prior to making comments on sports, please allow me to take this opportune moment to affirm why I chose 28 October 2016 as the commencement date for our first-ever national games. The meaning to bring up here is that 28 October 2016 was the 12th anniversary of the coronation day of the revered HM the King Preah Boromnead Norodom Sihamoni. From this forum, on behalf of the Royal Government and people of Cambodia, I wish HM the King good health and longevity to stay as cool shade for people in the whole Kingdom of Cambodia.
The Games Event Infers Peace and Stability in Cambodia
His excellencies, ladies and gentlemen and foreign guests participating in this event, please allow me to take this opportune moment to deliver my sincere appreciation for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, and the Cambodian National Olympics Committee, the organization commission of the national games events for their efforts to get this event up and running. This is a political message that indicates and affirms that peace and stability prevail in Cambodia. No one individual and/or group is able to hold Cambodia hostage. The national games events clearly assert Cambodia’s gradual advancement from one stage to the other, from regional to national level games, in a process of making a firm advancement towards 32nd SEA Games in 2023.
Configuring Infrastructures and Human Resources to Host SEA Games
In this circumstance, please allow me to express my sincere apology to sportsmen and sportswomen and the Cambodian people as a whole for that fact that we have to schedule our hosting of SEA Games in Cambodia to 2023. Country members of ASEAN, except Cambodia, had hosted SEA Games event one, or more than one, already. I wish to indicate that our resources are limited and I have already sought understanding from other ASEAN leaders for Cambodia’s need for relocating of resources to other necessary requirements such as roads, bridges, water canals, schools, etc. They all have granted us understandings and it is in this preparation today that Cambodia decides to schedule its hosting of SEA Games to 2023. It is more than six years from now.
Our reforms in the sports sector, on our way to SEA Games in 2023, require us to build infrastructures and human resources in response to regional level competition requirements. That would oblige us to spend no less than building two bridges over the Mekong River. It is in this meaning that I am seeking your understanding for the delay. That our resources are limited, we need to attend to other priorities, especially in dealing with our people’s living condition.
Thanks for Everyone Involved for the Event
Today, I would like to take this chance to deliver my greetings and appreciations to participations by everyone involved – from provinces or institutions in Phnom Penh, as well as those of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, the paratroopers of division 911, active military officers, and students, to make this forum colorful, lively, and active today. I am sending my appreciation also to artists and performers – traditional and modern, for giving their bests to make this event auspicious and enjoyable. I would take this time also to express my sincere thanks and appreciation for our people everywhere in and outside the country for providing their supports for sports movement in Cambodia, for every competition either inside or outside the country. I also avail my deep thanks to all sports federations for their efforts to strengthen and betterment of their sports activities.
Every Citizen Exercises
I am taking this moment to appeal to the people of Cambodia to active formulate a campaign that every citizen exercises and/or be an amateur of at least one sport type. They may not do it for competition but for their health. I am referring especially this recommendation for the Cambodian youth and children. They should be better alternatives to them from going for other bad stuff like drugs or other socially unacceptable actions.
May Companies and State Institutions Supports Sports
I am calling on companies as well as state institutions to set up alliance with sports – one or more than one sports types, according to their resource ability to encourage and support national games and sports event. I hope that companies will choose certain sports and the state institutions will choose others, to make sure the alliance with sports will encourage and promote our sports sector as a whole.
I know that participants here would be waiting for live coverage from this event. To end this remark, with our congratulation to the opening of the first-ever national games, may I re-ascertain my firm hope that victory will be for winners, but what is even more important, our nation wins. I am declaring now the opening of the National Games./.
