KUALA LUMPUR: Sarawak is likely to host up to half of the events, including the opening ceremony, for the 2027 Malaysia Sea Games.
This was disclosed by Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) secretary-general Datuk Nazifuddin Najib, adding that the arrangements for the games will be ironed out in detail when the Malaysia Sea Games Organising Committee (MASOC) is formed next year.
The dates for the 2027 Sea Games have yet to be confirmed.
"They have said that they want the opening ceremony to be held in Sarawak and also want a number of other events, including diving," said Nazifuddin yesterday.
"Roughly half of the events will be held in Sarawak but we will request for them to be held in one location to make it easier for the athletes. We do not want them to be spread across the state like it was during the Sarawak Malaysia Games (Sukma).
"So if the opening is held in Sarawak, we will likely have the closing ceremony in Kuala Lumpur.
"Penang will host a number of indoor sports such as bowling, while Johor will host football (matches).
"For sports such as sailing and track cycling, there are limited options in terms of locations so we may have to use pre-existing venues.
"We will discuss the locations in further detail when MASOC is set up. We expect MASOC to be set up by the middle of next year, at the latest."
Sarawak successfully hosted Sukma across various divisions in the state in August.
The government has decided to decentralise the 2027 Sea Games to reduce the financial burden on the federal government.
Sarawak have pledged roughly RM350 million for the games and thus have a substantial say in the organisation of the games while Penang is allocating RM15 million.
The 2027 Sea Games is expected to cost roughly RM700 million to organise.
Malaysia last hosted the Sea Games in 2017 in Kuala Lumpur which at the time had cost roughly RM608 million.