KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – It has taken years of meticulous planning but the 2017 Southeast Asian Games was forced to make a last-minute change to its schedule after organisers discovered its closing ceremony clashed with an important annual religious holiday.
Just months before the start of the biennial event in August, authorities announced the closing ceremony in Muslim-majority Malaysia will be a day earlier than scheduled, due to the clash with Islamic festival Hari Raya Haji.
The celebration will now be held on August 30, instead of August 31 which is the eve of the key holiday for Muslims, Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said.
Khairy told reporters on Tuesday that the change of date would not be an issue for the games which begin on August 19.
“The closing date of the SEA Games has been brought forward by one day, from August 31 to August 30. This is for us to celebrate a (Muslim) religious event … which falls on August 31,’’ the minister said.
