The
24th Southeast Asian Games (also known as SEA Games) was held in
Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat),
Thailand from December 6 to December 15, 2007.
The Thai Olympic Committee planned the event to coincide with the commemoration of 80th birthday of
King Bhumibol Adulyadej. Officials studied the possibility of doing the events in multiple venues like what was done in
Vietnam and the
Philippines.It was the sixth time Thailand has hosted the SEA Games. Thailand had hosted the 1959 (inaugural games), 1967, 1975, 1985 and 1995
SEA Games. The 2007 games were to be hosted in
Singapore, but the city-state gave up the chance in
2004 as the
National Stadium was slated for demolition in around that time to build the
Singapore Sports Hub.
Aside from Nakhon Ratchasima, events were held at
Bangkok and at
Chonburi.
Preparations
On February 24, 2006, northeast Thailand's
Nakhon Ratchasima Province authorities met to discuss the 2007 SEA Games schedule, and progress on the province's under-construction US$65 million sports complex. Presided over by governor Somboon Ngamlak, the meeting provided an overview of facilities, and ended with reassurances that facilities would be ready for SEA Games in 2007.
Medal summary
Mascot
Can (), a
Korat cat () was selected as the official mascot of the 2007 SEA Games.The cat wears "Pha Khao Ma", a traditional Thai loincloth, and plays the
khaen, a Northeastern-style mouth organ....
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