UPDATE 3-Games-Replacement Asian Games host needed fast, not Singapore - Ng

(Adds OCA statement) By Patrick Johnston SINGAPORE, April 18 (Reuters) - The Olympic Council of Asia must move fast to find a replacement city to host the 2019 Asian Games, said International Olympic Committee vice president Ng Ser Miang before ruling out his Singapore homeland as an option. The Vietnam government announced its surprise decision on Thursday to quit as host of the event in the capital Hanoi, citing a lack of preparedness and concerns that holding the multi-sport event for the first time would not prove financially viable. Wealthy Singapore will host the much smaller SEA Games in 2015 for 11 Southeast Asian countries in their soon to open $1 billion sports hub, which includes a 55,000-seater stadium, and 6,000-capacity aquatics centre, but it is not seeking any extra workload at short notice. "With the process of selecting a city and preparing the city for the Games, time is of the essence as we are only five years away," Ng said in a statement sent to Reuters on Friday. "We are putting all our resources and energy to ensure a successful SEA Games. A bid for the 2019 Asian Games is not on the cards at the moment." Hanoi was awarded the Games in November 2012, ahead of the Indonesian city of Surabaya but the cost of hosting the event, which economists have estimated could be as high as $500 million, was an issue. Although Vietnam's $155 billion economy is in recovery and annual growth of more than five percent is expected in the next few years, it faces many deep-rooted problems, including weak infrastructure, one of Asia's highest levels of bad debt and a state sector mired in graft and inefficiency. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung held a meeting with officials on Thursday and concluded it was better to opt out now because poor preparation could damage Vietnam's reputation and that the state budget could be invested "in other very urgent tasks". "The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) announced today that Hanoi, Vietnam, has withdrawn as the host city of the 18th Asian Games in 2019," the OCA said in a statement. "OCA fully understands the situation of the NOC Of Vietnam and Hanoi City." India, which has hosted the Asian Games twice, is still reeling from the cost and scandal surrounding its somewhat chaotic hosting of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi where preparations were heavily criticised. The OCA told Reuters on Thursday it would wait for official confirmation of Vietnam's withdrawal before discussing potential hosts of the 18th Asian Games and that has now been received. Ng, who failed in his bid to become the first Asian president of the IOC in September, said he understood Vietnam's position. "According to Prime Minister Nguyen, the decision to withdraw is due to Vietnam suffering the impact of global recession, hence it will not be able to do a good job," he said. "While I am surprised, I can understand completely." The Asian Games, which was held for the first time in 1951, usually consists of around 40 sports with athletes from 45 countries taking part. It combines traditional sports like athletics, swimming, cycling and boxing with Asian disciplines that include sepaktakraw, wushu and kabaddi and will be held in Incheon, South Korea this year. (Additional reporting by Nguyen Phuong Linh, editing by Ed Osmond)