KATHMANDU, Dec 5: The upcoming edition of the South Asian Games will be held in Nepal from March 9 -18 in 2019. A meeting of the South Asia Olympic Council (SAOC) held at the Nepal Olympic Committee (NOC) office in Kathmandu on Saturday took such decision.
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The meeting participated by representatives of five members of the SAOC besides India also announced Nepal Olympic Committee President Jeevan Ram Shrestha and General Secretary Lama Tendi Sherpa as the president and general secretary respectively of the SAOC as per the charter of the regional sports body.
The meeting has also decided to establish permanent headquarters of SAOC in Nepal, which had been pending since the inauguration of the games in 1984 under the initiative of Nepal.
Organizing a press conference in the capital after the meeting, NOC President Shrestha said that there will be 22 to 25 sports disciplines in the SAG though the categories were yet to be decided. The meeting has decided to allow the host country to propose two sports among the 25 sports to be included in the games.
Among other decisions taken by the meeting includes amendment of the charter of SAOC. The amendment will be endorsed by the next meeting of SAOC proposed for July 2017 in Bhutan.
Speaking at the inauguration of the SAOC meeting Shrestha informed the delegates that the government of Nepal has already endorsed the proposal to organize the games.
"The government has already endorsed our proposal and has allocated budget for the games," said NOC President Shrestha, adding, "A monitoring and instruction committee has been formed under the chairmanship of the prime minister and a preparation committee headed by the sports minister is also working accordingly to successfully organize the regional games."
It will be the third occasion that Nepal will be hosting SAG after the first edition held in 1984 and ninth edition in 1999 both in Kathmandu. The next event will be the 13th edition of sub continental sports extravagant.
Representatives from Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Bhutan attended the meeting while delegates from India and the Maldives were absent.
