President Prabowo Subianto wants to give special attention to the\ndevelopment of athletes with disabilities. This was conveyed by Minister\nof Youth and Sports Erick Thohir after reporting on a number of sports\nprogrammes to the President at his residence in Hambalang, Bogor\nRegency, West Java, on Friday (19\/6\/2026). On that occasion, Erick was\nalso accompanied by the head coach of the Indonesian national football\nteam, John Herdman.<\/p>\n
According to Erick, Prabowo believes that athletes with disabilities\nmust be given equal opportunities and support in developing their\npotential. He noted that there are 23.9 million people with disabilities\nin Indonesia, 11 per cent of whom are keen on sports. \u201cThis means the\nPresident wants to encourage that these disabled sportsmen and women are\ntruly given attention,\u201d Erick told reporters after the meeting.<\/p>\n
He said one of the programmes being pushed is coaching certification\nfor people with disabilities, so that they have the opportunity to\nbecome coaches once their athletic careers are over. \u201cTherefore, the\nPresident also wants to see disabled athletes and will even visit\nKaranganyar to see the National Paralympic Committee (NPC), which has\nnot yet been inaugurated. This is an important part of ensuring we give\nall Indonesian citizens equal opportunities. That is what the President\nconveyed,\u201d said Erick Thohir.<\/p>\n
Secondly, Erick said the meeting also touched on a long-term strategy\nfor national sports development. He requested the President\u2019s support\nregarding funding certainty for national training camps, which require a\nmultiyear budget scheme. \u201cAnd the President immediately said, \u2018I support\nit\u2019. The State Secretary and Cabinet Secretary will immediately follow\nup. Because a national training camp cannot be budgeted on an annual\nbasis; it must be multiyear,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
This is needed to prepare athletes for international sporting events\nsuch as the Olympics and the upcoming SEA Games and Asian Games, as\npreparation for these events must be carried out over a long period.\nFurthermore, Erick said the President is also paying attention to the\ndevelopment of athletes from a young age through a plan to build a\nnational sports academy. The academy will cover schooling from primary\nto senior high level. \u201cSo, future athletes will be nurtured from the age\nof 8 to 10 years old,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Additionally, the government is formulating a pension fund scheme for\nathletes as part of efforts to improve their welfare after retirement.\n\u201cThe President again asked about the athletes\u2019 pension fund, which we\nare still working on in terms of future preparations. That is what I can\nconvey regarding the Ministry of Youth and Sports\u2019 preparations,\u201d Erick\nconcluded.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/erick-thohir-and-john-herdman-meet-prabowo-discuss-athlete-development-1781880678", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }