The visiting delegations believe that Myanmar is trying to boost its medal count by packing the Games with sports its athletes have a better chance of winning. Even beach volleyball has bit the sand, although a spokesman reportedly claimed it had been excluded because “the sport’s outfits were not suitable for Myanmar culture”. ![]() As things stand at the moment, disciplines like tennis, table tennis, badminton and water polo, at which the other south-east Asian nations excel, will be conspicuously absent, replaced by the likes of vovinam (a martial art that was actually developed in Vietnam). But Myanmar is under fire for stretching this to a point where many other countries feel severely disadvantaged. It has always been the prerogative of the host nation of the SEA Games to include some “indigenous” sports on the roster. ![]() But most of the non-Burmese athletes expected to participate in the Games are just as mystified. There’s nothing out of the ordinary about a regional Asian competition including sports that are unfamiliar to Westerners. They may also award medals in wushu, vovinam and tarungderajat. ![]() THE South-East Asian (SEA) Games, which will begin in Myanmar on December 11th, will feature competitions in such popular sports as boxing, gymnastics, football and wrestling.
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