KAMPOT: Crowds flocked to the riverside in Kampot to watch three days of traditional boat racing for the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
From May 13 to 16, Kampot’s riverside was full of fans waving the Cambodian flag and cheering on the nation’s traditional boat racing team from a stretch of sand that flanks the water.
Cambodia managed to secure a gold medal in the five-crew U-24 Men’s 500m, with Thailand earning silver and Indonesia winning bronze.
In the 12-crew U-24 Mixed 500m event, Vietnam sailed away with a gold medal, Myanmar won silver, and Cambodia earned bronze.
The 12-crew U-24 Mixed 250m, saw Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Thailand compete for gold. Thailand went on to win, with Myanmar earning silver, and Indonesia bronze.
In the five-crew U-24 Men’s 250m, Myanmar beat Cambodia to take home gold. Cambodia scooped silver and the Thai team won the bronze.
In the 12-crew Open 250m, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand fought for first place, with Thailand triumphing to earn gold, Malaysia winning silver, and Cambodia bronze.
In the three-crew U-24 Women’s 250m, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam competed. Vietnam took home a gold medal, Cambodia secured another silver and Malaysia won bronze.
The 12-crew U-24 Men’s 250m saw Indonesia win a gold medal, Vietnam came in second with a silver, and Cambodia won bronze.
Despite Cambodia losing out on gold to Indonesia in the final race, the crowd went wild as the host nation’s team paraded past after finishing.