Preparations for 5th Asian Beach Games revealed
Da Nang has been chosen by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) to host the 5th Asian Beach Games (ABG 5) from 24 September to 3 October 2016, and it is expecting to welcome nearly 4,600 athletes from 45 countries and territories in Asia.
Reporter Bao An from the Da Nang Newspaper interviewed the Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Nguyen Phuc Linh, to find out about the city’s preparations for this biennial event.
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| Beach volleyball is one of the beach sports at ABG 5 |
Deputy Director Linh said that the OCA has carefully surveyed the competition venues in the city, the press and ABG5 management centres, plus the accommodation for the participating teams. They paid special attention to ensuring the security of participants and local traffic safety during ABG 5.
The contestants will compete in 14 beach sports in a total of 22 different categories. These events will take place at the East Sea Park, on the T-20 beach, and at a location near the Dana Beach Entertainment and Tourism area.
The participating teams will be staying in local 3 - 5 star beachside hotels near the competition venues and the hotels will earmark areas suitable for the athletes to perform their daily religious rituals as required.
A newly-built 5-storey building near Ho Nghinh street will be used for the press and ABG5 management centres. The building’s facilities, equipment, and transmission and electrical systems will have to meet the demands of reporters from Asian media agencies who will be gathering information about ABG5.
Following recent instructions from the city authorities, the Department will work closely with the Viet Nam National Music and Dance Theatre to develop scripts for the opening and closing ceremonies which will take place either at the city’s East Sea Park or the Tien Son Sports Arena, depending on the weather conditions at the time. The theatre’s Director, musician Nguyen Quang Vinh, will be the General Director of these ceremonies.
The installation of a digital clock at the roundabout of Ngo Quyen and Pham Van Dong streets to count down to ABG 5 is expected to be completed on 19 September this year, and the countdown will be officially started 5 days later to mark one year before the games begin.