By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, May 10: Artistic swimming (formerly synchronized swimming) will no longer feature in the 2026 Malaysia Games (Sukma) in Selangor after the sport failed to secure enough entries from participating states.
According to a report by New Straits Times (NST), the decision was finalised during a recent Sukma supreme committee meeting after fewer than six states signed up for the event, said Selangor Youth, Sports and Entrepreneurship executive councillor Mohd Najwan Halimi.
With the removal of artistic swimming’s five medal events, the total number of events at Sukma 2026 has been reduced from 474 to 469. However, the Games will still involve 37 sports overall.
Speaking after the Sukma and Para Sukma torch run at Dataran Kemerdekaan Shah Alam today, Najwan was quoted as saying preparations for the Games would continue as planned, including the use of 52 venues spread across nine districts in Selangor.
He also revealed that the State government had scaled back the Games budget by half following a decree from the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, who called for a more moderate and prudent approach in organising the event.
As a result, the estimated cost of hosting Sukma has been lowered to between RM40 million and RM50 million, compared to the earlier projected allocation of RM100 million.
Najwan said the opening and closing ceremonies would also be simplified and relocated from the Sepang International Circuit to another venue yet to be announced.
In addition, the number of volunteers planned for the Games has been drastically reduced, from an initial target of 30,000 people to between 3,000 and 5,000 volunteers.
Sukma 2026 is scheduled to be held from Aug 15 to 24, while Para Sukma will take place from Sept 5 to 10. — DayakDaily
