2009 SEA Games

During the Southeast Asian Games Federation meeting at the 2003 Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam, Vientiane, the capital city of Laos was chosen as the host of the 2009 Southeast Asian Games. ==Development and preparation==

The Laos 25th SEA Games Organising Committee (LAOSOC) led by president Somsavath Lengsavath was formed to oversee the staging of the games. Branding The logo of the 2009 Southeast Asian Games is the image of the Pha That Luang, the national landmark and shrine of Laos beside the Mekong River. The shrine represents Laos as the host of the 2009 Southeast Asian Games and the Lao Culture, Arts and History, whereas the Mekong River, resembled by three wavy lines below the shrine, represents the origin of life, culture and lifestyle of Lao community especially in sports. The river itself also represents the integration of the Southeast Asian countries and the friendship made through sport events. The mascots of the 2009 Southeast Asian Games are two white elephants dressed in traditional Lao attire named Champa and Champi. Champa is the male elephant and Champi is the female elephant. The elephants symbolises the host nation, Laos as it was known as the kingdom of Lan Xang in ancient times, which literally means "the kingdom of a million elephants". The cheerful expression on the faces of the mascots represents the joyful and lively atmosphere during the games and warm welcome from Laos as the host country of the 25th SEA Games. 33 songs were written for the games, which included The Spirit of the Flame, the theme song of the games which was written and performed by Sam Intharaphithak. Other songs included "Go Laos" which was sung by Sam Intharaphithak, Nalin Daravong, and Kave, "SEA Games Harmony" which was sung by Sithiphone, Sam Intharaphithak, Gai, Malya and Poui and "Vientiane Games" which was sung by Buratino. A Beerlao Campaign song for the games was also composed. Countdown The countdown to the 25th SEA Games was held at the Chao Anouvong stadium on 31 December 2008, featured programmes such as the New Year celebrations, a show from Miss SEA Games contestants, performances by various artists, and a fireworks display. A countdown clock was also placed at a nearby shopping mall and the Patuxay Monument in Vientiane. ==Venues==

The 2009 Southeast Asian Games used mostly new and some existing venues with the centrepiece of the activities being the new National Sport Complex. Incorporating the new 25,000-seat national stadium, it hosted most of the events. Athletes were housed at the National University of Laos, which was chosen as the games village. The 25th Southeast Asian Games had 27 venues for the games, all in Vientiane. Public transport Lao Association of Travel Agents provided bus services during the Games to fetch volunteers between the city and outlying venues and transport athletes and performers to and from the games village, airport, the city, the games venues and within Laos. Car services were also available in the city throughout the games period. ==The games==

Opening ceremony The opening ceremony of the 2009 Southeast Asian Games was held on 9 December 2009 at 18:10 (LST) at the New Laos National Stadium. The ceremony preceded with the arrival of the then President Choummaly Sayasone and several guests of honour to the stadium. This was followed by announcement of the ceremony commencement by announcers, the scoreboard countdown and the parade of athletes from the participating nations led by Lao Police Force band and flag bearers carrying the flags of the games and the flags of the participating nations began with the Bruneian delegation. The Lao delegation, the largest of all participating nations with 733 athletes and officials, received the warmest welcome from the audiences when they marched into the stadium. The ceremony concluded with the Lao farewell segment dance performances which included Paddy Trash, Lao New Year, Rocket Festival and boat racing festival. Participating nations • • • • (Host) • • • • • • • Sports Because of the limited sports facilities in Vientiane and Laos' lack of a coastline, only 25 sports featured in the programme, compared to 43 held in the 2007 Southeast Asian Games in Thailand. Among the Olympic sports removed from the Games were baseball, canoeing, sailing, gymnastics, hockey, rowing, fencing, triathlon, equestrian, softball, and basketball. • • • • ʰ • • • • • ¹ • • • • • • ¹ • • • • ¹ • • ʰ • • • • • • • ¹ ;Key :¹ – non-Olympic sports :ʰ – sports absent from previous edition and reintroduced by the host country Calendar Medal table A total of 1246 medals, comprising 372 gold medals, 374 silver medals, and 500 bronze medals were awarded to athletes. The Host Laos performance was its best ever yet in Southeast Asian Games history and was placed seventh overall amongst participating nations. ==Broadcasting==

The games were broadcast live on 14 radio and television channels and websites in six countries. ;Brunei • Radio Television Brunei ;Laos • Lao National Television, Lao Star Television, Lao National Radio ;Myanmar • MRTV-4 ;Singapore • Mediacorp Channel 5 ;Thailand • National Broadcasting Services of Thailand, Channel 7 (Thailand), Royal Thai Army Radio and Television Channel 5, TOT Public Company Limited, CAT Telecom, Thai Public Broadcasting Service ;Vietnam • Vietnam Multimedia Corporation, Vietnam Television Malaysia's TV3 and TV2 only broadcast the Games' Men's Football events. ==Concerns, controversies and legacy==

Prior to the games, the Laotian organising committee was criticised for reducing the number of sports. This had been done partly because Laos has no coastline (rendering sailing, windsurfing, and triathlon infeasible), and a general lack of sporting facilities in Vientiane. The inclusion of a number of Olympic sports, previously uncontested at the SEA Games, were interpreted as a bid for greater coverage of the Games in Laos. Few critics stated that Laos specifically selected games in which they had a better chance of winning gold medals. The decision to remove basketball from the programme was an unpopular one. Laos accepted funding from China, Japan, Vietnam and the ASEAN nations to construct the appropriate sports facilities including the US$100 million New Laos National Stadium and US$19 million Games village. Although prior criticisms had been levelled over the reduced programme and financing of facilities, upon commencement, the Games received a largely positive reaction from the other competing nations. The Games were considered a success for Laos, one of the poorest countries in the world, and a nation which had only sent four athletes to the 2008 Olympic Games. ==References==