SEA Games medal race officially opens today<\/p>\n
Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Hanoi<\/p>\n
The battle for gold medal honors begins in earnest Friday with
\nthe formal opening of the 22nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Vietnam.<\/p>\n
However, after an impressive start in the pre-opening ceremony
\ncompetition, Indonesia failed to add another medal to its
\ncollection on Thursday, which offered two golds in gymnastics and
\narchery.<\/p>\n
Kuswantoro took to the archery field as Indonesia's best hope
\nonly to tumble in the quarterfinals. He failed to take up where
\nhis Indonesian teammate Rina Puspita Dewi left off. Rina earned
\nIndonesia's 878-strong contingent's first medal at the regional
\nsporting event, which is being staged in Vietnam for the first
\ntime.<\/p>\n
Jonathan Sianturi's competition experience proved not enough
\nto set his young team up as a strong medal contender. The Thai
\nteam triumphed over Malaysia and the Philippines while Indonesia
\nwas left in fourth place.<\/p>\n
The tournament is not officially open yet, but Indonesia's
\nhopes for its first soccer gold medal since 1991 appear doomed
\nafter Bambang Pamungkas and his teammates were outsmarted 0-1 by
\nVietnam at the My Dinh Stadium.<\/p>\n
Indonesia could still qualify for the next round provided it
\nbeats Thailand in the final match in Group A.<\/p>\n
The Games also saw water polo, rowing and boxing events on
\nThursday. Goals were in abundance as Indonesia's water polo team
\nwas held to a 12-12 draw by the Philippines at the Aquatics
\nCenter, giving it an edge for medal contention after scoring two
\nwins and one loss.<\/p>\n
The qualifying competition for rowing began at the West Lake
\nnorth of Hanoi. Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh City saw only boxing as
\nthe first competition held out of 11 sports to be staged in the
\ncity, located 1,300 kilometers south of Hanoi.<\/p>\n
As of 11 p.m. six categories in the boxing had been staged.
\nPiter Samuel was the only Indonesian casualty. Playing in the 45
\nkilogram category, Piter was defeated by Vongpakhoun Sikham of
\nLaos. The other five Indonesians -- Hermensen Ballo (51kg),
\nMarwan Muling (60kg), Wilem Papilaya (64kg), Regues Christoper
\n(69kg) and Benny Elo Pere (75kg) -- won their quarterfinal bouts.<\/p>\n
After a week of pre-opening ceremony competition, regional
\nheavyweights Malaysia and Thailand embark on their campaigns to
\nrepeat their high-flying performances two years ago in Kuala
\nLumpur.<\/p>\n
Then, Malaysia took top spot on the gold medal table snaring
\n111 golds to Thailand's 103 and it is expected to be a close race
\nagain with hosts Vietnam and Indonesia chasing hard on their
\nheels.<\/p>\n
Fledgling nation East Timor makes its SEA Games debut, but
\ngaining experience in the international sporting arena is more
\nlikely to top the agenda of its 22-member squad than the medal
\nhunt.<\/p>\n
In total, more than 5,000 athletes and coaches from 11
\ncountries are taking part, many of whom will appear in Friday
\nevening's opening ceremony at My Dinh stadium.<\/p>\n
Twenty-two Vietnamese pop stars will be on hand there to sing
\nthem and 40,000 spectators into a frenzy, while parachutists
\nbearing the flags of the participating countries are scheduled to
\ndrop in on the proceedings.<\/p>\n
According to official figures, Vietnam has spent US$350
\nmillion in preparation for its turn in the regional sports
\nspotlight, including building 36 stadiums, arenas and training
\ncenters, and upgrading old facilities.<\/p>\n
Medal standing after pre-opening competition on Thursday<\/p>\n
1. Malaysia 1 2 0 3<\/p>\n
2. Indonesia 1 0 1 2<\/p>\n
3. Thailand 1 0 0 1<\/p>\n
4. Singapore 0 1 0 1<\/p>\n
5. Philippines 0 0 2 2<\/p>\n
6. East Timor 0 0 0 0<\/p>\n
7. Vietnam 0 0 0 0<\/p>\n
8. Laos 0 0 0 0<\/p>\n
9. Myanmar 0 0 0 0<\/p>\n
10. Brunei 0 0 0 0<\/p>\n
11. Cambodia 0 0 0 0<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sea-games-medal-race-officially-opens-today-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }