The Youth and Sports Ministry hopes to table the amendments to the Sports Development Act 1997 in the next sitting of Parliament session to tighten the regulation on sports events in the country.

Its minister, Khairy Jamaluddin said the drafting of the amendments which began in 2015 was almost complete and would be sent to the Attorney-General's Chambers as soon as possible for approval.

"We hope to table the amendments in Parliament in March next year, provided the general election has not been called by then," he said after launching Rimau Cafe at the Youth and Sports Ministry in Putrajaya today.

Khairy reportedly said the proposed amendments include raising the fine to RM500,000 and extending the jail sentence on organisers who did not comply with the regulations.

Errant event organisers are liable to a maximum fine of RM5,000, jail not exceeding six months or both, under the Sports Development Act 1997 (SDA).

Amendments to the SDA came up after three runners were injured in a car crash during the Klang City International Marathon 2017 on Sunday.

During the marathon, runner Evelyn Ang Gek Suan, 44, suffered serious head injuries, while two other runners Ahmad Hadafi Jus, 44, and Amiruddin Hamid, 37, sustained minor injuries when they were hit by a car.

The organisers came under scrutiny for holding the event without approval from the Sports Commissioner's Office (SCO).

Meanwhile, police confirmed that the organiser of the Klang City International Marathon did not obtain valid license from SCO to organise the tournament.

South Klang district police chief Shamsul Amar Ramli said this was the result of the police investigation on the organiser, Earth Runners International Group Sdn Bhd, following a report made by the assistant sports commissioner on the day of the event.

Shamsul Amar said, in the report, the man stated that he had been informed by Sports Commissioner about the accident involving three participants at Batu 2, Jalan Kapar Klang at 4.30am.

“Following the report, the review carried out by the police found the event organiser had failed to obtain necessary license from the SCO to organise the tournament,” he said in a statement today.

He said the case was investigated under Section 36(1) of the Sports Development Act 1997.

No approvals

MAF president Karim Ibrahim, meanwhile, said most of the thousands of running events held in the country are not approved by the Malaysia Athletics Federation (MAF) and the SCO.

Karim noted the organisers did not apply for approval because of their quest for profit, although it was the only regulatory body for running events under the Sports Development Act 1997.

“The organisers are just greedy and are putting the safety of participants and the public at risk. The fees charged by the MAF for technical expertise is not high," he told a press conference at Wisma OCM in Kuala Lumpur today.

The Selangor Amateur Athletics Association will also lodge a police report against the organisers for not applying for a permit from them.

Karim also noted the MAF would formulate guidelines for reference by the organisers and the conditions for obtaining the permit.

"All approved running events have been uploaded onto the Youth and Sports Ministry website two days ago. The public should ensure the event is recognised before joining the event.

"I urge the police and local authorities not to give permits if they did not get the approval of the MAF and the SCO.”

He also warned that action would be taken against national athletes and MAF officials involved in unapproved running events.

- Bernama