The 1st South Asian Beach Games was held in

Hambantota Hambantota ( si, හම්බන්තොට, ta, அம்பாந்தோட்டை) is the main town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri LankaThe prominent Malays (මැලේ) most part of the population is to be partly de ...

, Sri Lanka between 8 and 14 October 2011. The opening ceremony was held at the Hambantota Beach Stadium, located in Hambantota district. 359 athletes from eight

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...

n nations were competed.

Host city selection

Sri Lankan bid for Hambantota was selected over bids of

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

and the

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

by the South Asian National Olympic Committees in a unanimous decision.

Logo and the Mascot

The logo was launched on 20 January 2011 in

Galle Galle ( si, ගාල්ල, translit=Gālla; ta, காலி, translit=Kāli) (formerly Point de Galle) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, from Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Southern ...

. The Mascot represents a character called "Salu Paaliya" which is one of the 12 Palis. Palis are characters which represents various dance forms. It is believed that the "Salu Paaliya" has comical actions and the power to heal which is ideal for the Beach Games as the Mascot.

Sports

Marathon swimming and sailing were to be contested in Arugam Bay while the remaining sports were contested in Hambantota. However, later organizers decided to move the events closer locations,

Tangalle Tangalle ( Sinhala තංගල්ල , ta, தங்கல்லை) (also known as Tangalla) is a large town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. It is one of the largest towns in southern provinc ...

and

Tissamaharama Tissamaharama ( si, තිස්සමහාරාමය , ta, திஸ்ஸமஹாராம) is a town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka. History It was the capital of the Sinhalese Kingdom of Ruhuna as early as the 3 ...

. 26 events in 10 sports were held.

Triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of swimming, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the time transitioning between the ...

and beach

bodybuilding Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...

were dropped from the program due to a lack of participants. * 3-on-3 basketball pictogram

3-on-3 basketball(2) () * Football pictogram

Beach football (1) () * Handball pictogram

Beach handball Beach handball is a team sport where two teams pass and bounce or roll a ball, trying to throw it in the goal of the opposing team. The game is similar to standard handball, but it is played on sand instead of on a solid floor. Because the ball ...

(1) () *

Beach kabbadi (2) () * Netball pictogram

Beach netball (1) () * Volleyball (beach) pictogram

Beach Volleyball (2) () * Swimming pictogram

Marathon swimming Marathon swimming is a class of open water swimming defined by long distances (at least ) and traditional rules based in English Channel swimming. Unlike marathon foot-races which have a specifically defined distance, ''marathon swims'' vary in ...

(2) () *

Lifesaving Lifesaving is the act involving rescue, resuscitation and first aid. It often refers to water safety and aquatic rescue; however, it could include ice rescue, flood and river rescue, swimming pool rescue and other emergency medical services. ...

(6) () *

Tent pegging Tent pegging (sometimes spelled tent-pegging or tentpegging) is a cavalry sport of ancient origin, and is one of only ten equestrian disciplines officially recognised by the International Equestrian Federation. Used narrowly, the term refers to ...

(8) () *

Windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

(1) ()

Participating nations

South Asian Games participating countries

A total of eight countries participated at the 2011 South Asian Beach Games. * * (19) * (4) * (90) * (56) * (36) * (56) * (110)

Schedule

This is the schedule of events for the 2011 South Asian Beach Games.

Medal table

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:South Asian Beach Games, 2011 2011 in multi-sport events South Asian Games, 2011, Beach 2011 in Sri Lankan sport 2011, Beach 2011 in Asian sport Multi-sport events in Sri Lanka Hambantota Beach sports competitions