The decision to pull out only a month before the event was due to open has been officially blamed on the Government failing to provide the necessary funding for the Games.

It means that this second edition of the event, scheduled to take place between August 5 and 12, will be cancelled as there is no time to find an alternative host for an event that was set to see 1,500 athletes from 130 countries compete in 31 disciplines in 14 sports. 

"We regret to inform the 2023 ANOC World Beach Games in Bali will no longer proceed," Oktohari said.

"We deeply apologise to ANOC and the whole International Federations, athletes, and the NOCs who have contended since the qualification rounds.

"We are also thankful to all parties who have dedicated their time in preparation for this event."

Indonesia’s Youth and Sports Minister Dito Ariotedjo has denied that they were not prepared to fund the event and had authorised a budget of Rp446 billion (£23 million/$29 million/€27 million).

Oktohari claimed that it had been difficult for the ANOC World Beach Games organisers to access the cash.  

The situation was aggravated by the withdrawals of several initial sponsors, he added, although Dito also claimed "other issues" could have been behind Indonesia's withdrawal.

Many have taken that as code for the participation of Israel in the Games being a deal-breaker.

Indonesia has the biggest Muslim population in the world and has no diplomatic relations with Israel.

In March, the country was stripped of the right to host the FIFA Under-20 World Cup following protests against the participation of Israel in the tournament.

Oktohari, however, failed to address this speculation in his statement and continued to blame the decision to withdraw on the financial challenges they faced.

"On this day, we have 30 days remaining for the event preparation with a long way to go for the budgeting process," he said.

"This is a bitter pill for us to swallow but with the time constraint, we are unable to prepare for a world-class multi-event.

"We see the lack of time when the mechanism for using the budget becomes very risky in making world-class multi-events.

"While Indonesia has been an extraordinary host by holding the Asian Games and the Asian Para Games.

"When there are more harms than benefits, what must be done is to maintain Indonesia's dignity,"

Oktohari promised that KOI will continue to communicate with ANOC and other stakeholders for this event, including optimising the negotiation and diplomacy regarding the fall-out from the decision.

"Consequence is beyond doubt," he said.

"We are still communicating.

"However, NOC Indonesia will strive to continue working to bring exposure toward Indonesian sports."

To read "Indonesia's 2036 Olympic bid sunk by ANOC World Beach Games fiasco" click here.