MANILA, July 9 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) has begun renovating the country's venerable Rizal Memorial Coliseum ahead of the country's hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
Construction workers on Monday morning placed an enclosure around the 85-year-old stadium in preparation for a major facelift of both the interior and exterior of the Manila venue, the country's sports governing body said on Tuesday.
According to the PSC, the renovation will be funded to the tune of 150,000 U.S. dollars by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.
The renovation is the stadium's first major one in recent memory, and is expected to be finished in time for the Rizal Memorial Coliseum to host events at the 2019 SEA Games.
The indoor sporting arena, which has a capacity of 8,000 seats, was built in 1934 as part of the wider Rizal Memorial Sports Complex which was used for the 1954 Asian Games.
The Rizal Memorial Coliseum, operated by the PSC, had previously hosted Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and Philippines National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) events, before those organizations moved to larger and more modern venues.
The 2019 SEA Games is scheduled to be held across several cities on the Philippines' main island of Luzon from November 30 to December 11.
