PM denies revealing price tag for stadium

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday denied a senior sport official’s $100 million cost estimate for a new national stadium, although he confirmed it will be China footing the bill.
Speaking at a graduation ceremony on Koh Pich, the premier said that he had approved the building’s design but distanced himself from the nine-figure tally for its completion.
“I did not say China gave $100 million to build this stadium; where did The Phnom Penh Post get this from? I did not say it,” he told more than a thousand graduating students. “I just approved a design from the [two designs presented] for approval.”
‘Satisfied’
While Hun Sen did not address the stadium’s cost on Monday, National Olympic Committee secretary-general Vath Chamroeun pegged it at $100 million on the same day in a follow-up interview with the Post.
Though he insisted that the final estimate had yet to be tallied, Hun Sen yesterday confirmed the source of its funding.
“My negotiation is that China will give it, but how much it will cost has not been estimated,” he said. “Our Chinese friends just say that, whatever the cost, they will cover all, and Cambodia and Prime Minister Hun Sen are satisfied with that.”
The Morokot Decho stadium, which is located on the outskirts of the capital and intended to host the opening and closing ceremonies of the Southeast Asia Games in 2023, saw ground broken in April 2013, with Hun Sen in attendance.
Speaking to the Post yesterday, Chamrouen still insisted that the Cambodian technical team’s evaluation of the main stadium’s construction cost would be about $100 million.
It’s not a number he feels will be a problem for the Chinese.
“China doesn’t care how much it costs, but we estimated it would cost about $100 million for the construction of this main stadium alone,” Chamroeun said.

ONE straw-weight belt on line

Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke will face Roy Doliguez for the inaugural ONE straw-weight belt at ONE: Warrior’s Quest at the Singapore Indoor Stadium tonight, as ONE lightweight champion Shinya Aoki puts his title on the line against number one contender Koji Ando in the main event.
Singapore flyweight Stephen Langdown faces veteran Chinese mixed martial artist A La Teng Hei, while Ariel Sexton and Eddie Ng in a lightweight contest. Amir Khan and Shannon Wiratchai meet in a much anticipated matchup.
Amnuaysirichoke, of Singapore’s respected Evolve gym, is a Muay Thai world champion currently undefeated in MMA, with four victories. He has received the highest accolades in Muay Thai, being a three-time Lumpinee Stadium champion, Thailand’s national champion and the Omnoi Stadium champion, and he holds a 282-65 record in the discipline.
Muay Thai is one of the most widely used skill bases in modern mixed martial arts.
Known as a technical fighter with quick hands and lightning feet, Amnuaysirichoke has some of the most unique and creative striking combinations in Muay Thai. His transition to ONE Championship gave him an opportunity to potentially achieve as much success in mixed martial arts.
He burst onto the scene last year and finished all four of his opponents convincingly. Amnuaysirichoke now drops a division to strawweight with the opportunity to be crowned the champion in the division.
The Philippines Roy Doliguez boasts riding a 6-1 record. Considered one of the best strawweights in Asia, Doliguez strengthened that postion by avenging the only loss of his career. Doliguez is also a professional boxer with more than 40 professional boxing bouts.
This bout will feature two contrasting striking styles and it will be interesting to see who triumphs and walks away with the ONE strawweight belt.
Stephen Langdown, with two wins and one defeat, is a pro fighter from Singapore. One of the brightest prospects in the country, Langdown has proven his success inside the ONE Championship cage. Tonight he gets to showcase his skills once again in front of 12,000 fans in his home town.
A La Teng Hei Li is a Chinese mixed martial artist. He hails from inner Mongolia and grew up wrestling. A veteran of China’s mixed martial arts scene in, Hei Li now gets the opportunity to pit his skills against some of the best in the world in ONE Championship.
Hong Kong’s Eddie “The Magician” Ng is a lightweight with a 7-2 record who has dazzled in his multiple appearances in the ONE Championship cage. Ng has won four of his five bouts in ONE and returns to action after a one-year layoff determined to continue his ascent. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt, Ng has never gone to a decision in his professional mixed martial arts career thanks to his exciting style.
Ariel “Tarzan” Sexton (9-3) is a Gracie jiu-jitsu black belt with an impressive record of eight wins and three losses. Born in Canada, he now lives in Costa Rica. His grappling skill have been evident in his victories, finishing opponents with a variety of submission moves.
Singapore’s Amir Khan (3-1) is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt who has trained under the legendary Relson Gracie and has competitive wrestling and Muay Thai experience. With more than seven years of combat sports experience under his belt, Khan now takes on Thailand’s Shannon Wiratchai, who also has a 3-1 record.
Wiratchai has showcased an aggressive, brawling style every time he has stepped into the ONE Championship cage, making him a favourite among fans, and tonight is sure to be no different. A practitioner of the Chinese martial art of Baguazhang, Wiratchai will once again look to exhibit the discipline in the thick of the MMA action.
The full card ONE: Warrior’s Quest will be shown this evening at the Irish Place #119 Street 110 from 6:15pm.

Kenny, Nau combine to win pro-am tennis tournament

Cambodia's Davis Cup pivot Bun Kenny inspired his teammate from Cambrew, Soursdey Nau to win the doubles title in the first ever pro-am tennis tournament at the National Training Center yesterday.
The Kenny-Nau combine edged out Doeum Samsocheaphearun and Chheang Sowann 7-6 (7-5) in a final where both teams represented Cambrew Ltd, one of Tennis Cambodia’s long time partners.
Thus it came as no surprise that Cambrew also took the team honours overall in a tournament that saw national players and coaches of the federation play as pros. The amateur side was filled by sponsors and supporters of Tennis Cambodia. Cambrew won 17 matches in all ahead of CCC with 12 wins
Each amateur would pair with a pro to play out a doubles event which was a round robin affair on Saturday, rounding off this unique event with a master style draw.
The four sponsors who pitched in four players each for the 16 pair pro-am were ANZ Royal, Angkor Beverages, Ezecom and Cambodian Country Club with 12 overall wins. ANZ were one short in third place while Ezecom ended up last with eight wins.
On the pro side were Davis Cup non-playing captain Tep Rithivit, technical director and head national coach Braen Aneiros, Cambodia’s number one player Bun Kenny, Chea Samsocheaphearun, who made his Davis Cup debut this past March, and other National Team members Chheang Vannasak and Long Samneang, who both recently returned from Palembang, Indonesia after winning a Bronze Medal in the Islamic Solidarity Tennis Championships held from May 10 to 18.