Russian and Brazilian players compete in the beach soccer final at the World Beach Games in Doha, Qatar in 2019. (Photo: benarnews.org)
Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia has withdrawn as host ofthe 2023 Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) World Beach Gamesand the ANOC General Assembly in August 2023 which were scheduled to be held inBali next month.
ANOC on July 4 announced the withdrawal, saying that it iswith great surprise and extreme disappointment that it has learned that theIndonesian Olympic Committee (KOI) has withdrawn from its commitment to hostthe two events.
According to Indonesia's Antara news agency, KOIexpressed an apology for its decision, citing limited time to processadministration and bureaucracy as the reason.
Indonesia’s sudden withdrawal made ANOC unableto find an alternative country and had no choice but to decide to cancel thisyear's World Beach Games.
Previously, in October 2021, the ANOC General Assembly choseIndonesia as the host of the second World Beach Games, after Doha (Qatar) in2019. According to the original plan, the Games will be held from August 5-12with the participation of about 1,600 athletes from 130 countries, while theANOC General Assembly will take place from August 13-15./.