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| In a proposed expanded SEA Games edition, the Philippines is slated to play Australia not just in basketball but in other sports. FIBA (file photo) |
MANILA--Will a second Southeast Asian Games iteration take place soon?
A different kind of SEA Games has been proposed, with the possibility that Australia and New Zealand would be invited.
The proposed meet, to be called "SEA Games Plus", could begin as soon as 2028, with the Philippines being tapped to host the inaugural staging.
According to Indonesian Olympic Committee president Raja Oktohari as reported by VN Express, Bhutan and Fiji are also being tapped to join.
The proposed SEA Games Plus will mainly focus on Olympic sports, something the Philippines, despite only winning 50 gold medals in the recent regular SEA Games, actually played well in.
In another report by VN Express, the Philippines is tied with Singapore as the best-performing team in the SEA Games in terms of how they fared in Olympic sports.
Thirty-five of the Philippines' 50 golds came from sports that are seen in either the Summer or Winter Olympics, accounting for 70 percent of the championships won.
Oktohari added that the SEA Games Plus is meant to really measure how competent Southeast Asian teams are in a fair game, since he does not like the idea of host countries manipulating what sports are to be played so they can get a clear homecourt advantage.
As anticipated by many, Thailand won the overall championship of the just-concluded SEA Games in Bangkok and nearby cities, winning a whopping 233 golds and 500 medals in total.
However, even the buildup to this year's SEA Games was marred by controversies, like the limit of medals a certain gymnast can win, leading to two-time Olympic gold medalist Carlos Yulo backing out.
There were also allegations of Thailand continually changing the eligibility rules in certain sports, like basketball, although Gilas Pilipinas braved through the flip-flopping to keep the SEA Games 5x5 golds, with both the men's and women's teams beating the Thais in the finals.
There were also instances where Thailand was almost always drawn into the "group of hope" in various sports like football and esports.
The proposed SEA Games Plus is set to take place a year after Malaysia's hosting of the regular SEA Games in 2027.
However, Malaysian sports official Datuk Pekan is already skeptical about the proposal.
In an interview with New Strait Times' Farah Azharie, Pekan said Oktohari's proposal "only creates confusion."
Pekan proposed to mainly fix the existing SEA Games instead of putting up another multi-sport meet that would be a standalone event.
As of posting, neither Philippine Sports Commission chairman Pato Gregorio nor Philippine Olympic Committee president Bambol Tolentino has commented on the proposal, which was raised during the SEA Games Council meeting last Christmas.
