OCA Press Release: Asian Games 2018 organisers move from planning to operation phase

Jakarta, Indonesia, December 13, 2017: The two-day Chefs de Mission Seminar for the 18th Asian Games in Indonesia next year opened at the Hotel Mulia Senayan in Jakarta on Wednesday morning.

The OCA’s Honorary Life Vice President, Mr Wei Jizhong, welcomed delegates from 44 National Olympic Committees and thanked organising committee INASGOC for all the arrangements for the seminar, which attracted 200 participants in total.

Mr Wei said the seminar marked the end of the preparation and planning phase for the 18th Asian Games and that, starting from tomorrow, the focus would switch to operation mode.

"Today’s meeting is not only a Chefs de Mission meeting," said Mr Wei. "Today, we – the OCA, INASGOC and the participating NOCs – will discuss and finish the preparation phase of the Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang.

"We will put all the questions on the table and discuss and find a final solution. Starting from tomorrow, INASGOC will enter into the operation phase."

The President of INASGOC, Mr Erick Thohir, gave the opening address. "We are still progressing but we are confident we will finish just in time," he said.

On behalf of the Ministry of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Indonesia, Mr Gatot Dewa Broto admitted that the organisers were "in a hurry" to finish the work but said the government could guarantee a "very memorable and commemorative" event.

He also stressed that one of the priorities of INASGOC was to solve the Jakarta traffic congestion in time for the Asian Games next August, and said the President of the Republic, Mr Joko Widodo, and the Vice President, Mr Jusuf Kalla, were playing a leading role in making the Games a success.

INASGOC made 19 presentations, including the sports programme, venues, Athletes’ Village at Jakarta and Palembang, accreditation, accommodation, transportation, NOC Services, medical and anti-doping, media services, broadcasting and branding.

Some of the key issues and timelines from the seminar were:

*Sport Entry deadlines for NOCs: Entry by Sport, January 31, 2018; Entry by Number, April 30; Entry by Name, June 30.

*Regarding the traffic congestion, Mr Thohir said INASGOC would use bus lanes and traffic police escorts to assist in the traffic flow for Games participants.

*The Athletes’ Village at Kemayoran, North Jakarta, will accommodate 14,500 athletes and officials, while the Athletes’ Village inside the Jakabaring Sports City at Palembang will house 3,000 athletes and officials for the 11 sports.

*The online accreditation system will close in April 2018.

*Organisers have booked 5,000 hotel rooms near the competition venues for athletes, officials and media.

*The Pre-Delegation Registration Meetings for NOCs will take place at the OCA/Olympic Solidarity Regional Forums in early May. The forum for Central and West Asia will be in Kyrgyzstan, and for East, South East and South Asia in Cambodia.

*The Asian Games will require 13,000 volunteers, including 2,000 in Palembang. The Asian Games Test Event in February will need 2,000 volunteers. Most of the volunteers will be aged between 18 and 20. In addition to the volunteers there will be a 5,000-strong workforce on duty during the Asian Games.

*Almost 100 representatives from 12 countries attended the World Broadcasters’ Meeting in Jakarta last month. IGBS (International Games Broadcast Service) has been appointed host broadcaster. The World Press Briefing will be held next March.

*Organisers are expecting 7,000 media, comprised of 4,000 reporters and photographers and 3,000 from broadcasting.

*The Team Welcome Ceremony for NOCs will take place on August 15-16 (9am to 5pm) at the Athletes’ Village in Jakarta.

The OCA’s 18th Asian Games will take place in Jakarta and Palembang, capital of South Sumatra province, from August 18 to September 2, 2018. It will be the first time Indonesia has hosted the OCA’s showpiece event since the fourth edition in Jakarta in 1962.

There will be 10,000 athletes from the OCA’s 45 National Olympic Committees competing in 40 sports, 67 disciplines and 462 events, plus e-sports as a demonstration event. There will be 62 competition venues in four venue clusters, including Jakabaring Sports City at Palembang.

The Chefs de Mission Seminar continued on Wednesday afternoon with a venue tour of the Gelora Bung Karno sports complex in downtown Senayan. On Thursday, delegates will visit Palembang and other venues in Jakarta.

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