The government has dismissed claims that it lacks funds to finance the organising of the sixth Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (Aimag), scheduled for November.
Despite a decision to cut 14 sports, the government says the games will still be held in Bangkok and Chon Buri from Nov 21 to 30 as planned.
Jirawat Arunyakanon, an adviser to Tourism and Sports Minister Sermsak Pongpanit, said the decision to cut 14 sports was made in response to an Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) recommendation.
It was not a suggestion made to the OCA by the ministry as some had alleged, he said.
Following the recommendation of the OCA, the government decided to cut 14 sports and is now committed to ensuring efficiency and transparency in spending the limited budget available, said Mr Jirawat.
Among the sports proposed to be cut — pending final approval by the Sports Authority of Thailand — are badminton, weightlifting and wrestling.
“More than 800 million baht has been spent in the past four years in preparation for hosting the games, and more still has to be spent, which will be subject to an inspection by various organisations to ensure transparency,” said Mr Jirawat.
Claims that the government was short of funding was made by Chaiyapak Siriwat, a vice-president of the National Olympic Committee of Thailand in his capacity as the head of the Aimag organising committee.
“I couldn’t understand why on earth the minister [Mr Sermsak] thought cutting the 14 sports could be justified just three months before the games begin,” said Mr Chaiyapak.
He said the decision is bound to reflect negatively on the country.