Indonesia losing ground in badminton competition<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A new poll has revealed that Indonesians believe
\nthe nation's badminton charm is on the decline following major
\nflops in this year's Olympic Games in Atlanta.<\/p>\n
Nearly 60 percent of 201 respondents randomly surveyed by the
\nJakarta monthly sports magazine Raket last week believed that
\nIndonesia's disappointing performance in Atlanta augurs a further
\nsetback, although optimism of a revival remains.<\/p>\n
The poll results were presented during yesterday's \"Preparing
\nfor the 2000 Olympics\" discussion, staged by Raket at the Kompas
\nbuilding in Jl. Palmerah Selatan, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Indonesia brought home one gold, one silver and two bronze
\nmedals from Atlanta. This was down from the two golds, two
\nsilvers one bronze achieved by Indonesia in the 1992 Barcelona
\nOlympics.<\/p>\n
The poll found that 43 percent of respondents thought an
\ninsufficient training program and the dependence on veteran
\nshuttlers was responsible for Indonesia's Olympic setback.<\/p>\n
Another 36 percent blamed the Badminton Association of
\nIndonesia for failing to anticipate the progress made by its
\nrivals. The remaining respondents said that Indonesian shuttlers
\ndid not have enough preparation.<\/p>\n
When asked whether they thought Indonesia had a chance to win
\ngold in Sydney, 40 percent answered \"no\", saying that Indonesia
\nhas a dearth of talented shuttlers to fill the shoes of its
\ncurrent players.<\/p>\n
\"The current shuttlers are no longer reliable\" and \"Indonesia
\nmust be aware of other countries\" were picked as the second and
\nthe third reasons.<\/p>\n
The remaining 60 percent expressed guarded optimism that
\nIndonesian shuttlers will return home with gold medals in Sydney,
\nmost likely in the men's doubles.<\/p>\n
Atlanta Olympics' gold medal-winning team of Ricky Subagja and
\nRexy Mainaky top the list of favorites with 58 votes, while the
\njuniors Tony Gunawan and Rudy Wijaya received 28 votes.<\/p>\n
Fewer talented figures were identified in the women's singles,
\nwith 39 respondents choosing Olympic silver medalist Mia Audina
\nas candidate for the gold medal. Indonesia's number one, Susi
\nSusanti, received only 18 votes.<\/p>\n
Hopes of winning the men's singles crown appear to rest on
\nHariyanto Arbi, the reigning world champion who is yet to win a
\nmajor title this season. He received 15 votes.<\/p>\n
A speaker at the discussion, sociologist Fritz Simanjuntak,
\nwho conducted his own survey, predicted that Hariyanto would meet
\nChina's rising star Sun Jun in the 2000 Olympics men's singles
\nfinal. (yan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/indonesia-losing-ground-in-badminton-competition-1447893297",
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