Will it be Ha Noi or HCM City? Cost considerations may prove decisive as
the government mulls where to organise the 31st Southeast Asian (SEA)
Games in 2021. It will be the second time Viet Nam will host the Games,
having staged the 22nd edition in Ha Noi in 2003.
HCM City looks unlikely to have the opportunity to host the regional
event, as Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has demanded that cities and
provinces not build new facilities to host domestic and international
sports events, in order to cut costs and make optimum use of existing
facilities.
Vuong Bich Thang, general director of the National Sports
Administration, said, during a meeting in Ha Noi early this month that
it would be more economical to organise the event in Ha Noi than in HCM
City. The infrastructure built for the 2003 Games in Ha Noi would only
need to be maintained and upgraded, whereas if the Games were to be held
in HCM City, Viet Nam would have to invest a significant amount of
money to build and upgrade the necessary infrastructure.
"If Ha
Noi holds these Games, Viet Nam will save money. The experience from
hosting the Games earlier will also help Ha Noi organise the event
better," said student Pham Thu Thuy.
Agreeing with Thuy's point,
Nguyen Minh Duong said, "I think that holding the 31st SEA Games in Ha
Noi is the most suitable (option). It has good facilities for the event.
The country should save money for developing the poor provinces and
districts, and for building new roads and hospitals."
According to
an official in the Viet Nam Olympic Committee, the country will have to
spend around US$100 million to host the Games in 2021. But experts
dispute this figure.
Viet Nam spent $250 million to host the Games
in 2003. Taking into account rising prices, HCM City will definitely
need more than $250 million to host the Games in 2021, they say.
HCM
City will need to upgrade old facilities and build new ones, including a
new stadium with 50,000-60,000 seats, an aquatic sports complex, and
accommodations, besides buying security equipment.
Nguyen Hong
Minh, former head of the Elite Sport Department of the National Sports
Administration, said HCM City will need US$100 million just to build a
new stadium equivalent to the National My Dinh Stadium in Ha Noi and an
aquatic sports complex.
"Adding other items, the cost of holding the Games in HCM City will be $200-300 million, or even more," Minh said.
Last
April, Vietnamese authorities decided to withdraw plans to host the
2018 Asian Games, following a public outcry over the $150 million price
tag.
Despite the likely high cost of holding the 2021 Games in HCM
City, many people support the idea, arguing it will give the southern
city an opportunity to upgrade its sports facilities.
"HCM is the
big city in the country, but it has never held a big sports event. The
Games in 2021 are a chance for the city to build modern and big sports
facilities that can host national and international events and match the
sports infrastructure in Thailand and Malaysia," Phan Tien, a resident
of HCM City, said.
"It will also give HCM City a chance to attract
visitors and promote the image of Viet Nam and its people
internationally," Tien added.
"At present, the infrastructure for
sports in HCM City doesn't match the city's size. Its biggest stadium,
the 25,000-seat Thong Nhat stadium, is not up to the mark and doesn't
meet the fans' demands. We often say that HCM City is equal to the big
cities in the region, but it doesn't have any stadiums to compare with
them," said Tien.
"HCM City will not have a good stadium in the
next 50 to 100 years if it doesn't organise this regional sports event.
It can't become the biggest economic hub of Viet Nam and the region. The
city needs a modern stadium to serve fans in the south and welcome
international athletes to compete in the SEA Games," said Hoang Minh
Giang.
According to Do Tho, building new infrastructure for the
Games would be costly, but cities and provinces in Viet Nam need to
invest in sports facilities for people to take part in sports and
recreational activities.
As for the expense, Tho has a solution.
"HCM City can build new facilities with non-State funds. The government
can call for investment by companies and frame reasonable policies for
them."
"Viet Nam spent $250 million for the 22nd Games held in Ha
Noi, when the economy was not so developed. Now Viet Nam's economy is
better, why can't it invest?" Tho asked.
While supporting HCM City
hosting the Games in 2021, Nguyen Manh Dung said the authorities needed
to plan carefully to avoid wasting money after the Games.
"I back
HCM City holding the SEA Games, but we should follow the advanced
countries. For the 2012 Summer Olympics, England built only temporary
facilities. After the event, the facilities were reduced in scale or put
to other uses," Dung said.
Other countries in the region, such as
Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, often hold the Games in different
places to develop the local economies and promote tourism in those
areas, he said.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and
the National Sports Administration are making detailed plans for
organising the 31st edition of the Games for the government's approval.
Whichever city is selected as the venue, the Games will help promote
sports in Viet Nam.
