Megawati opens women's basketball tournament<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri opened on
\nMonday the women's basketball tournament recently named in her
\nhonor for the first time since the event began in 1996.<\/p>\n
Eight basketball clubs from around the country are
\nparticipating in the tournament, which began on Sunday and will
\nclose on Friday. Women's basketball has received little attention
\nin the country despite the national team's achievements at the
\nSoutheast Asian (SEA) Games.<\/p>\n
The women's team contributed a silver in the 1991 SEA Games in
\nManila, and in Jakarta in 1997, compared to the men's team
\nwinning bronzes in Singapore in 1993 and in Brunei Darussalam in
\n1999.<\/p>\n
In an extemporaneous speech, Megawati expressed hope the
\ntournament could motivate young girls to take up the sport.<\/p>\n
\"I see that this country has only a few women's basketball
\nteams. Hopefully, this tournament can encourage young players to
\ncompete in basketball tournament,\" she said before inaugurating
\nthe tournament at Senayan basketball hall on Monday.<\/p>\n
Chairman of the Indonesian Basketball Association (Perbasi)
\nSutiyoso said he was happy that Megawati was willing to lend her
\nname to the event.<\/p>\n
\"We told Ibu Mega when we asked her to inaugurate this
\ntournament that women's basketball received little attention and
\nits achievement is declining,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso, who is the Jakarta governor, said that the
\ntournament would be held annually. He described it as a warm-up
\nfor the national women's basketball league (Kobatama) in July.<\/p>\n
He said he was considering staging a tournament for high
\nschool students, to be called the Governor's Cup. \"People are
\neager to play basketball if there are official tournaments,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
In the first game of the event on Monday, defending champion
\nCLS Surabaya outclassed Rajawali Bandung 72-37. It was CLS'
\nsecond victory after it beat Rajawali Sakti Surabaya 100-49 in
\nthe first day on Sunday.<\/p>\n
It was Rajawali Bandung's first defeat following an 81-49 win
\nagainst Mataram Utama Yogyakarta on Sunday.<\/p>\n
In the second game, Merah Putih (MP) Medco overcame Aspac 44-
\n35 in a contest of Jakarta teams.<\/p>\n
MP team manager Aoh Rossalam said after the match that his
\nteam wanted to cause an upset against CLS Surabaya, champion in
\nfour Kobatamas.<\/p>\n
\"We have trained intensively. We also have eight players who
\nare members of this year's National Games (PON) team. We
\nrecruited two former members of the 1996 PON,\" he said.<\/p>\n
His team beat Bhinneka Sritex of Surakarta 65-62 on Sunday.
\nBhinneka was runner-up in the 1999 women's Kobatama. MP Medco
\nfinished sixth last year.(ivy)<\/p>",
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