Eighty athletes participating in 10 sports will represent Cambodia at the 13th Asian Games in Bangkok from December 6-20, sports officials said Thursday.
Taekwon-do, swimming, boxing, karate, shooting, badminton, rattan ball, beach volleyball, and football are among the sports the Cambodians will compete in, according to National Olympic Committee of Cambodia Secretary-General Meas Sarin.
He said expenses of the athletes will top $90,000, with most of that being picked up by the government. The athletes are scheduled to leave Phnom Penh Dec 3 and return Dec 21.
However, the men’s basketball team has withdrawn for financial reasons, Meas Sarin said. He added the decision was made by the Cambodian Basketball Federation.
Prum Bunyi, the Olympic committee’s cabinet chief, said the basketball team was unable to find a local sponsor to fund the team’s participation.
Additionally, he said the basketball team—which has been training almost daily at the outdoor Olympic Stadium courts—would likely not be competitive against the other teams in the region.
“Technically, we’re not ready yet. The team needs advanced training,” Prum Bunyi said.
Diamil Faye, an adviser to the Olympic committee, said that the basketball team needs to get more organized inside Cambodia before it will be able to field a team to represent the nation abroad.
