The 1998 Asian Games (officially known as the 13th Asian Games) was a multi-sport event held in Bangkok, Thailand from December 6 to December 20, 1998. A total of 6,544 athletes from 41 Asian National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participated in these games, competing in 376 events in 36 sports.This edition of the Games marked the addition of three sports—squash, rugby union and cue sports—to the list of Asian Games sports; squash was included after seven years of lobbying by the Asian Squash Federation.