Thai newspaper speaks out on behalf of U22 Vietnam, criticizing SEA Games Organizing Committee

(NLDO) - Thai media criticized the 33rd SEA Games Organizing Committee immediately after the incident of not playing the national anthem when U22 Vietnam and U22 Laos opened the football match on the afternoon of December 3.

Thairath newspaper headlined: “SEA Games opening match in chaos again, national anthems of Vietnam and Laos not played”. The Thai newspaper expressed outrage as this serious incident rarely happens at continental and regional events.

Previously, the Organizing Committee had received criticism from the Vietnamese and Lao press, and the Thai media admitted that this was a very "embarrassing" mistake for the host country.

In response to this series of criticisms, Dr. Kongsak Yodmanee, head of the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT), also apologized for the incident of not playing the national anthem during the match between U22 Vietnam and U22 Laos at the 33rd SEA Games.

He said the problem stemmed from a problem with the sound system, even though it had been tested and was working properly two days earlier. SAT confirmed the problem would be fixed and subsequent matches would play the national anthem as per regulations.

U22 Vietnam won 2-1 against Laos after the incident of not playing the national anthem

Not only stopping at this incident in the match of U22 Vietnam, Thairath also raised a series of problems at Rajamangala Stadium when quoting from the post of reporter Suradej Aphaiwong (TNN): Some of the lighting lights at the stadium broke down right before the match, the organizers had to borrow lights from another stadium to replace them in time.

In addition to this series of incidents, Thairath criticized the traffic jam in Bangkok that caused U22 Vietnam to arrive at the training ground 30 minutes late. In addition, a series of problems related to the tournament's management and information occurred when the national flag was mistakenly placed on the official website, incorrect announcements were made, or press cards were delayed.

Up to now, Vietnamese media is present in Thailand but only a few newspapers have received official press cards at SEA Games 33.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/bao-thai-lan-thay-u22-viet-nam-len-tieng-phe-binh-btc-sea-games-196251203200358736.htm