MYANMAR will send a total of 25 athletes – 20 male and five female – to take part in this month’s 5th ASEAN Para Games, the vice chairman of Myanmar Paralympics Sports Federation (MPSF), U Myo Myint, said last week.

The games were originally scheduled to be held in Laos in January 2010 but will instead take place in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur from August 15 to 19.

The 25 athletes will take part in five sports – athletics, swimming, table tennis, chess and sitting volleyball, U Myo Myint said.

“We held a local disabled event last November and selected these athletes from that. They have been training in camp for three months, since May. We believe in the athletes’ talent and hope to get good results in Malaysia,” said U Peter, the secretary of MPSF.

“While they have been training, some players have spent their leisure hours playing games such as chess. That has helped them improve ahead of this month’s competition. The MPSF has participated in these games four times since 2001 and in every games, Myanmar’s athletes could grab some medals including gold medals,” said U Peter.

He added that the MPSF particularly fancied athletes’ chances in swimming and athletics and believed Thailand and Vietnam would provide the strongest competition.

The Para Games will feature athletes with physical disabilities from the 10 ASEAN member countries – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste and Vietnam. The previous Games were held in Thailand’s Nakhon Ratchasima province on January 20-26, 2008 and Myanmar finished sixth overall, winning 12 gold medals, 11 silver and 12 bronze.