Outstanding Athletes to be Sculpted on Win-Win Monument
This combined photo shows Vath Chamroeun, Pal Chhor Reaksmy and Bou Samnang.
- By Kim Makara
- September 20, 2023 11:56 AM
PHNOM PENH – Outstanding athletes, medals, and mascots from the SEA Games and the ASEAN Para Games will be sculpted on the wall of the Win-Win Monument to commemorate the historic sport events.
Vath Chamroeun, secretary-general of the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia (NOCC), said athletes are always the main characters in every competition because they promote and earn merit for the country with their ability.
“Their victories will make the country recognized internationally,” he said. “We will sculpt the most popular athletes with the highest achievement in the 32nd SEA Games on the wall of the Win-Win Monument.”
“We will not only include those outstanding athletes, but we will also sculpt the medals and ascot. We will put it as ‘Cambodia’s Success for the 2023 SEA Games and ASEAN Para Games’.”
He said the Win-Win Monument was the place for future historical documentation and symbols which were considered as heritage.
“Therefore, there must be a big part of history, which promotes Cambodia to other countries. Those sculptures, in the next 100 or 1,000 years, will remind the next generation that Cambodia was successful in hosting the SEA Games and ASEAN Para Games for the first time.”
Chamroeun said two female athletes had been chosen for the sculptures so far. They include vovinam athlete Pal Choraksmey, who won six medals, four gold, one silver, and one bronze, and the 5,000m runner Bou Samnang, who stole the hearts of people around the world with her determination to finish the race in heavy rain.
The NOCC is still choosing more athletes and is yet to reveal the date to start the sculptures.
“We put their achievement first, not only the athletes themselves. We also consider more events other than the competitions. For example, Bou Samnang did not win medals, but won the hearts of people around the world,” he said.
“Therefore, she is one of the symbols. We will sculpt her running under the raindrops like how she was during the race. This will be a memory for the future.”
Originally written in Khmer for ThmeyThmey, this story was translated by Meng Seavmey for Cambodianess.
