By sheer number of personnel alone, the 30th Southeast Asian Games will be one colossal undertaking never done before in the regional meet’s history.
The Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (Phisgoc) announced on Thursday that at least 35,000 people are expected to send their credentials before the Sept. 30 accreditation deadline.
Out of that figure, nearly 11,000 are athletes, coaches and officials from 56 sports to be played from Nov. 30 to Dec. 11, while over 1,500 will request for Games access as members of the covering media.
“We are closely coordinating with the security department to ensure that everyone who gets accredited have cleared all security protocols,” said Alona Quintos, Phisgoc director for accreditation and uniforms.
Meanwhile, deputy speaker Mikee Romero of 1Pacman party list urged the Department of Education and the Phisgoc to allow students to watch the grandest regional sports festival for free so they can cheer for Team Philippines.
“We have state-of-art athletics and swimming centers but it will look ugly if there are no student-cheerers,” said Romero, who is taking part in the meet as a member of the Philippine polo team.