The Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong Coliseum and the Western Park Sports Centre should get a carnival-style decoration for the 2009 East Asian Games (EAG), giving the public a chance to soak in the event's festive spirit both in and outside the venues.

This is the concept of the three architects who won the design competition for EAG venues yesterday, defeating 17 other competitors.

The winning team has used the games emblem and slogan - Be the Legend - to the full, placing them almost everywhere, including staircases and pillars.

Team member Lawrence Wong said they got the idea from the five Olympic rings, and used it as the design's theme colour. A venue would have only one theme colour to ensure consistency.

Food stalls, an exhibition gallery, a children's playground and souvenir shops would deck up the exteriors of the coliseum in Hung Hom, with a canopy covering all these facilities.

"We have tried to give the venues a carnival-like setting, so that even passers-by could enjoy the festive spirit and know that something important was taking place," Wong said.

A sculpture designed on the basis of the Olympic rings would occupy the pride of place outside Hong Kong Stadium in Causeway Bay.

The team spent two months on the design, which does not involve any structural change in the venues, and the cost of construction would be minimum, Wong said.

"It's not a costly project. I think it's within the budget of the games organizing committee," he said.

"It's a flexible design. We have used a lot of graphics, which can also be used to decorate other venues."

Hong Kong East Asian Games Organizing Committee President Timothy Fok hoped the 2009 games would be successful.

"The participants of the competition have paid a lot of attention to design. I hope they will continue to contribute their expertise in the future," he said.

The Hong Kong games would be less expensive than Macao because no new venues have to be constructed.

The government could adopt the winning team's design while renovating the venues.

The SAR government has already agreed to spend HK$1 billion to revamp lcoal sports facilities for the games, including rebuilding Kowloon Park and the coliseum and building a fully equipped multi-purpose stadium complex for international sports events.