Abdul Karim (centre) stressing his point during the press conference with Ting (right) and Snowdan.
KUCHING (March 11): Construction of the Sarawak Sports Village in Petra Jaya here has reached about 90 per cent completion, said Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
The Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development Minister said it is one of the sports facilities under construction here in Sarawak’s efforts to achieving its vision of becoming a sports powerhouse.
“We have taken the lead in this matter and if you look at our sports facilities alone, I believe that the Sarawak Sports Complex in Petra Jaya is the largest sports complex in Malaysia in a single venue.
“No other state provides such a variety of facilities all in one place,” he told a press conference after launching the 9th Sarawak Hornbill Tourism Awards, Sarawak Tourism Quick Facts book, and the Calendar of Tourism Events for 2024 (CoE) here today.
He said still under construction at the sports complex are facilities for wushu, rugby and cricket.
“God willing, all these facilities will be in time for the 21st Malaysia Games (Sukma) this August,” he said.
He also said that the state government had approved the construction of a velodrome next to the Sarawak Sports Complex.
“This is the one sports facility that we do not have in Sarawak and once the velodrome is completed and ready, all our sports facilities will be complete, and this will enable us to host more sports events including international ones.”
On Sukma which will be taking place here from Aug 17 to 24, Abdul Karim said preparations for the biennial sports event were running smoothly.
“This Sukma will be the biggest event yet with 37 sports and more than 400 events which will be held in nine divisions.
“We have appointed a chief executive officer to ensure that our preparations, be it in terms of upgrading of facilities, preparation for athletes, purchasing sports equipment and so on are well planned and running smoothly,” he said.
He said Deputy State Secretary Datu Hii Chang Kee, who has been appointed as Sukma chief executive officer, had also discussed with the Ministry of Youth and Sports yesterday on allocation from the federal government for Sukma.
“Part of the cost will be borne by the state such as the upgrading of facilities, preparation for the athletes and the federal government will also help to bear some of the cost.
“But they would have to discuss it with the Ministry of Finance first before they can make a decision on how much funds will be allocated,” he said.
Also present at the press conference were Deputy Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Ministers Datuk Sebastian Ting and Datuk Snowdan Lawan.
