Host city Singapore Athletes participating 4370 Opening ceremony 5 June 2015 | Nations participating 11 Events 402 in 36 sports | |
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Motto Celebrate The Extraordinary | ||
The 2015 Southeast Asian Games, officially known as the 28th Southeast Asian Games (or simply 28th SEA Games), was a Southeast Asian multi-sport event hosted by the city-state of Singapore. It was the fourth time the country had hosted the games and the first time since 1993. The games was held from 5 to 16 June 2015, although several events had commenced from 29 May 2015. About 4370 athletes from 11 participated nations competed in the Games, with 402 events in 36 sports featured in the Games.
Contents
- Host city
- Development and preparation
- Venues
- Public transport
- Volunteers
- Ticketing
- Countdown
- Security
- Medals
- Cost
- Logo and mascot
- Songs
- Sponsors
- Opening ceremony
- Closing ceremony
- Participating nations
- Sports
- Medal table
- Broadcasting
- Concerns and controversies
- References
Singapore was awarded rights to host the Southeast Asian Games in 2011 after several delays from 2007, due to construction of the New National Stadium and is the fourth nation to host the Southeast Asian Games after Thailand, Myanmar and Malaysia and before Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam and Laos.
The final medal tally was led by Thailand, followed by host Singapore and Vietnam. Several Asian, SEA Games, and national records were broken during the games. Though there were several controversies, the Games were deemed generally successful with its effective management of cost spent to host the games, arrangement of public transport and games promotion and with the rising standard of competition amongst the Southeast Asian nations by the reduction of non-Olympic sports.
Host city
Singapore's selection as the host of the 28th Southeast Asian Games of 2015 was announced in 2011 during the 26th Southeast Asian Games, held in Indonesian cities Palembang and Jakarta. Singapore had previously been nominated to host the event in 2007 and 2013, but turned down both opportunities citing costs associated with the construction of the new Singapore Sports Hub.
Development and preparation
The Singapore SEA Games Organising Committee (SINGSOC) was formed on 28 June 2012 to oversee the staging of the event.
Venues
The 2015 Southeast Asian Games used a mix of new, existing and temporary venues. Given the city-state's compact size, most venues were pre-existing public-sporting facilities located in the suburban heartlands which were reverted to public use after the games. No major retrofitting work were done in most venues as most had been used to host major multi-disciplinary events such as the 2010 Youth Olympic Games.
At the centrepiece of the activities was the Singapore Sports Hub which was completed in mid-2014. Incorporating the new 55,000-seat national stadium, it hosted most of the events.
A games village was not built. Instead, a "village in the city" concept saw athletes and officials housed in 20 hotels in downtown Singapore. Besides being physically near to the Singapore Sports Hub, it was hoped that it will add vibe to the city and reduce post-games costs in converting a dedicated games village to other uses.
The 28th Southeast Asian Games had 30 venues for the games.
Public transport
Given the existing extensive public transport network already in place, there is no games-specific major infrastructural development to support it. The clustering of venues is aimed at easing the traffic flow, bus and Mass Rail Transit service for games athletes and officials were provided.
Volunteers
The organisers estimated that about 15,000 volunteers are needed to successfully host the games. Volunteer recruitment began in late 2013, and by February 2014, about 5,000 volunteers have signed up. This number swelled to over 17,000 by February 2015, and a volunteers night event was held at Universal Studios Singapore to launch the sports volunteers brand name as "Team Nila" and to thank the volunteers who have signed up with free shows at the venue. Amongst the pool of 17,000 volunteers, 35% came from the community, while 65% were from corporations in support of the games.
Ticketing
A total of about 790,000 tickets were put on sale from February 2015 online, at the Singapore Indoor Stadium and at SingPost outlets. To encourage public participation in the games, it was announced on 28 January 2015 that 18 of the sports will be free for spectators, while the other 18 are kept at relatively affordable levels of between S$5 to S$20. By 15 April 2015 some sports such as swimming and fencing were selling fast, while silat and sepak takraw were much less popular. Organisers reported that ticket sales were pass 70% for most sports by 27 April, with fencing and swimming being the most popular at 85 and 70% tickets sold respectively, while rhythmic gymnastics, silat and wushu have also sold over 70%. Billiards and snooker, equestrian, sepak takraw, taekwondo, and artistic gymnastics have sold about half their tickets. Rugby and judo have sold 30%, while table tennis has sold only 20%.
Priced between S$5 to S$20, priority sales for the opening and closing ceremonies tickets for those who registered theirs interests in 2014 began on 15 January 2015, while sales for the general public began on 22 January 2015. In February 2015, tickets to the opening ceremony were going at over seven times their original value on unauthorised websites, despite 40% of the tickets still available at that time. By March 2015, tickets to the opening ceremony were sold out.
Countdown
During the closing ceremony of the 2013 Southeast Asian Games, the SEAGF Flag was formally handed over to Singapore from Myanmar. This was followed by a song and dance section highlighting Singapore as the next venue.
On 27 June 2014, a series of festivities were held at the Singapore Sports Hub, including a fireworks display, to mark the one year countdown to the games. The Sports Hub Community Open House was held in conjunction with the launch to introduce the new sports facilities to the general public.
The countdown to the games began on 15 February 2014 with a launch party at the Gardens by the Bay, where the logo, theme and mascot were also introduced.
800 Nanyang Polytechnic students organised a major countdown event on 11 April 2015 to mark the final 50 days in a few days, where about 4,000 people turned up to attend a concert and a sports carnival.
On 16 April 2015, the 50-day countdown began with various organisations stacking a number each through a video tribute. This included: London School of Business and Finance Singapore (49), Compassvale Primary School (48), Development Bank of Singapore (47), National Kidney Foundation (46), CWT Limited (45), Park View Primary School (43), Sport Singapore (42), 41st Battalion, Singapore Armoured Regiment (41), and Corporation Primary School (40).
Security
The principal agency to ensure the security of the games is the Singapore Police Force, supplemented by the Auxiliary Police Forces. The organisers singled out security as one of their major concerns ahead of the games, with worries over unforeseen security breaches which may occur across any of the venues, some of which are easily accessible by the public.
Medals
A total of 1,327 medals were awarded during the games. The design of the medals were unveiled on 27 April 2015. Designed by Joys Tan from Sport Singapore, they feature the Games' logo on one side, and the Singapore Sports Hub on the reverse. Each medal will be 80mm in diameter and will each weigh 183 grams. It was also announced during the media brief that smaller versions of the medal, in the form of medallions, will be given to all spectators of the closing ceremony.
Cost
The games was budgeted to cost SGD325 million (USD287 million) but eventual cost came to SGD264 million. There were concerns the cost would exceed budget, as had happened when Singapore hosted the Youth Olympics in 2010. In contrast, the cost of organizing the 2013 games, which was hosted by Myanmar, was estimated to be SGD400 million.
Logo and mascot
The logo of the 2015 Southeast Asian Games is an image depicts a winning athlete crossing the finishing line with his/her arms raised in victory represents the extraordinary potential that exists in every participating athletes. The five figure of the sport events competed represents the diversity of sports featured during the Games. It also represents the combination of strength, focus, grace and skills of the athletes involved in sporting pursuits. The palette of colours represents the dynamic energy of the sports played in the games and the excite moments of the games and Sport as a tool of uniting people of the region regardless of their language, belief and colours. Overall, it represents each and everyone's dreams united in the spirit of the games. The logo also depicts the Southeast Asian Games Federation logo and the word "28th SEA Games". The word "Singapore 2015" on the finishing tape represents Singapore as the host of the 2015 Southeast Asian Games.
The mascot of the 2015 Southeast Asian Games is a lion named Nila. The name comes from Sang Nila Utama, the founder of Singapura. Nila has a red mane and heart-shaped face and is described as courage, passionate and friendly. He wears either his signature tracksuit or blue sporting attire, depending on the occasion.
Songs
A special compilation album titled Songs of the Games was produced by veteran music director Sydney Tan and released on 3 March 2015. It features the three official theme songs: "Unbreakable" written by Amir Masoh and performed by Tabitha Nauser, "Greatest" by Daphne Khoo and "Ordinary" written by Amir Masoh and performed by The Sam Willows. The other songs included: "You're Wonderful" performed by Tay Kewei, Gayle Nerva and Tabitha Nauser, "Flags Up" written and performed by The Sam Willows, "Champion" written by Charlie Lim and performed by The Sam Willows, "Still", "A Love Song-Unbreakable", "Forever", "You're almost There", "Dancing on the world", "Colours" and "Reach".
Sponsors
A total of 100 sponsors, comprising 4 Main sponsors, 10 Official sponsors, 27 Official partners and 59 Official supporters sponsored the 2015 Southeast Asian Games. The broadcasting rights of the main sponsor MediaCorp is owned by MediaCorp TV.
Opening ceremony
The opening ceremony was held on Friday, 5 June 2015, beginning at 20:00 SST (UTC+8) at the National Stadium in Singapore, the first major opening ceremony for a sporting event in the new venue. Organised by the Singapore Armed Forces, which has also been responsible for the annual National Day Parade, they were supported by a creative team with Beatrice Chia-Richmond serving as Creative Director. The ceremony was helmed by more than 5,000 performers and volunteers and supported by 3,500 soldiers. Given the enclosed nature of the stadium, extensive use of an aerial system to allow suspension and movement of performers and props are possible. Floor projection are accomplished using 160 multimedia high-definition projectors.
The ceremony begins with the band orchestra performance and historical lookout of previously hosted Singapore Southeast Asian Games and footage of people lineup distance countdown to Singapore National Stadium followed by arrival of the VIPs, Tony Tan Keng Yam and Lee Hsien Loong. The hosts of the ceremony are Nikki Muller, Chua En Lai and Sharon Au. The National Anthem of Singapore is played first as the national flag of Singapore was raised, followed by countdown projection, the volunteers from Singapore Soka Association performance forming the map of Singapore with nature theme. This is accompanied by the traditional dances of Singapore's main races.
Nila, the mascot apparently leaped down in the stadium with a hanging parachute after the video footage of the mascot. Athletes of participating nations paraded into the stadium followed by parade of the Southeast Asian Games Federation games flag and the games edition flag, the late Lee Kwan Yew footage about the 2015 Southeast Asian Games, welcoming speech of Lawrence Wong, and declaration of games opening by Tony Tan Keng Yam, President of Singapore. Flags of the games edition is raised to the song "Reach" performed by local songwriter Dick Lee and the Methodist Girls’ School choir. Athlete's and judge's oath are taken by Lin Qingyi, Singapore's netball player and Azhar Yusoff the rugby judge and referee respectively.
These are followed by 5 acts, which are mass performances performed by students all over Singapore, volunteers from Singapore Soka Association and notable Singapore celebrities. The acts are Act One - DNA, Act Two - Imagination, Act Three - Youth Expression, Act Four - Sports And The City which include appearance of Singapore top athletes such as Joseph Schooling, and gratitude to coaches all over Southeast Asia and Act 5 - Singapore in the Stadium where a gigantic model of DNA emerge slowly from the center of the stage. Soon after the last act, a group of athletes passes the flame one after another from a dragon boat and into the National Stadium before passed on to Fandi Ahmad, who finally lit the cauldron with the flame with his son, Irfan Fandi that night accompanied with a bunch of fireworks.
Closing ceremony
The Games had its closing ceremony held on Tuesday, 16 June 2015, from 20:00 SST (UTC+8) at the National Stadium in Singapore. The ceremony begins with a countdown footage video followed by hosts of the ceremony enter the stadium in a car who are also hosts of the games opening ceremony. Singapore president and the other VIPs then enter the stadium and after that a video about the games' wonderful moments is played. Medal Winners of every participating nations paraded into the stadium onto the stadium floor to the beat of music - Remix of the Songs of the Games played through the stadium, followed by the video of the games volunteers, Team Nila.
Team Nila then entered the stadium and danced to the music played. Ng Ser Miang awarded Lawrence Wong and Singaporean SEA Games President, Tan Chuan-Jin the Olympics spirit award. Tan Chuan-Jin then delivered a closing speech, in which he includes an emotional quote, paying tribute to all victims of the 2015 Sabah earthquake in which many Singaporean primary school students from Tanjong Katong Primary School died and all the national flags of the participating nations and the games flags been flown at half-mast on 8 June 2015 during the games. The Singapore president declared the games closed with Charlie Lim played the song as the games flags were lowered and the flame of the cauldron extinguished. A group of athletes surrounded the cauldron lighter which sends off the firework.
The SEA Games responsibilities was officially handed over to Malaysia, host of the 2017 Southeast Asian Games, in which Khairy Jamaluddin, Minister of Youth and Sports of Malaysia receive the flag of the Southeast Asian Games Federation as its symbol. The national anthem of Malaysia was played as the National Flag of Malaysia was raised. A Malaysian segment performance: "Diversity in Motion" was performed by Malaysian dancers with Monoloque and Najwa Mahiaddin sang "The Birth of a Legend" (Malay:Lahirnya Lagenda) on the stage. The performance was divided into three parts: "Birth", "Rooted", and "United".
A Singapore farewell segment performance is later performed with a parade of colonial era, peoples, symbols, memorable landmarks, government policy and 1993 Southeast Asian Games stamps and objects, brought back the nation's historical memory in the past 60 years. The ceremony concludes with a party with music spun by Dutch DJ Ferry Corsten and a performance by local fusion Jazz group The Steve McQueens.
Participating nations
An estimated total of 4490 athletes (about 2610 men, 1880 women) from 11 nations competed at the 2015 Southeast Asian Games. The number of athletes competed for each nation is shown in parenthesis. However, the information maybe incorrect at source.
Sports
The first 30 sports were announced by the Singapore National Olympic Council on 10 December 2013 on the sidelines of the 27th SEA Games in Myanmar. It announced then that there was room for as many as eight more sports. On 29 April 2014, the final six sports, namely boxing, equestrian, floorball, petanque, rowing and volleyball were added to the programme. Floorball will feature in the event for the first time after being a demonstration sport in the 2013 edition.
In its selection of events, the organising committee indicated their desire to set a model for subsequent games in trimming the number of "traditional" sports to refocus on the SEAG's initial intent to increase the level of sporting excellence in key sports. Hence, despite room for up to eight traditional sports, only two, floorball and netball, were included in the programme. Amongst the other 34 sports, 24 are Olympic sports and all remaining sports are featured in the Asian Games.
The 2015 Southeast Asian Games programme was featured 402 events in 36 sports and disciplines. The number of events in each discipline is noted in parentheses.
¹ – not an official Olympic Sport.
² – sport played only in the SEAGF.
³ – not a traditional Olympic nor SEAGF Sport and introduced only by the host country.
Medal table
A total of 1313 medals comprising 403 gold medals, 401 silver medals and 509 bronze medals were awarded to athletes. The Host Singapore's performance was their best ever yet in Southeast Asian Games History, and were second only behind Thailand as overall Champion. An additional gold medal was awarded at the Rhythmic Gymnastics individual all-round event.
* Host nation (Singapore)
Broadcasting
Host nation