KUALA LUMPUR: The Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) wants a seamless transition of sports from the 2025 Sea Games in Thailand to the 2027 edition in Malaysia.
On Saturday, its president Tan Sri Norza Zakaria said this was to ensure backup athletes get the best preparation and exposure at the Bangkok Games before they can peak in Malaysia two years later.
OCM secretary-general Datuk Nazifuddin Najib and the National Sports Council (NSC) will work closely to propose sporting events to the Sea Games Federation (SEAGF) at a meeting in Bangkok next month.
"Nazifuddin will engage with the NSC to coordinate the sports that we want to maintain, ensuring they are included in Thailand.
"We aim for the events to be the same as those to be contested in 2027 when we host the Games.
"We do not want the sports events in Thailand to be too different from Malaysia so that the programmes we implement remain consistent.
"In other words, the backup athletes we introduce in Thailand can peak two years later when we are the host nation," said Norza after chairing the OCM executive board meeting and annual general meeting at the Academy Badminton Malaysia in Bukit Kiara.
Norza also touched on the importance of maintaining consistent standards when organising multi-sport games.
"After the Phnom Penh Sea Games, we amended the Charter to involve more Olympic sports, and it was well-received by the 11 member nations.
"The option to choose non-Olympic sports is now only limited to four, which is good news for everyone.
"We don't want our flow from the Sea Games to Asian Games and then the Olympics to detach," added Norza.
Up to the last Sea Games in Cambodia, host nations can include up to eight Category 3 (regional and traditional) sports.
