W

ith the opening of the 3rd Islamic Solidarity Games (ISG) fast approaching, only nine out of 44
participating delegates on Thursday had arrived for the Sept. 22-Oct. 1 event in Palembang, South Sumatra.

The nine participants are from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Palestine, Kuwait, Turkey, Morocco, Turkmenistan, Iraq and Syria. Their flags have immediately been hoisted at the Jakabaring Sports compound, the venue for most of the events at the Games.

From 57 members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), 44 countries had confirmed their participation in the upcoming event. The quadrennial event, which will be participated in by around 3,200 athletes and officials, showcases 13 sports with a total of 1,530 medals up for grabs.

According to an official with the National Olympic Committee (NOC), Diana Puspita, the flag hoisting ceremony was a gesture to honor the delegates that have arrived in Palembang.

'We expect that by Sept. 21, delegates from all participating countries have arrived here and we can hoist their flags,' she said.

Diana added that Palembang Mayor Romi Herton would host a welcoming party for all delegates on Sept. 21.

Athletes started the basketball competition on Sept. 15, while soccer matches are slated to kick off on Thursday.

A local organizing committee, Muddai Madang, said the opening ceremony would be simple, considering the limited budget provided by the government.

The disbursed funds, which totaled Rp 128 billion (US$11 million), were allocated to the national committee (Rp 1.8 billion), the central organizers (Rp 47 billion) and the local organizers (Rp 79 billion).

'There will be no flame lighting event or fireworks during the opening ceremony as such events are banned in Islam,' he said.