Three gold medals expected from badminton in Olympics<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Badminton Association of Indonesia is
\ntargeting three gold medals at the next Olympics in Sydney in the
\nyear 2000.<\/p>\n
Fritz E. Simanjuntak, a sociologist and sports observer, said
\nat the "Prepare for the 2000 Olympics" discussion organized by
\nRaket magazine on Saturday that Indonesia hopes to win the men's
\nand women's singles and the men's doubles in the quadrennial
\nevent.<\/p>\n
"We have a lot of potential shuttlers to help make the dream
\ncome true," he said.<\/p>\n
A Raket poll indicated that the public are pinning their hopes
\non Haryanto Arby, Olympic silver medalist Mia Audina and the team
\nof gold medalists Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky.<\/p>\n
The only senior shuttler picked by the public was Susi
\nSusanti, the 1992 Olympics gold medalist. Lydia Djaelawidjaja and
\nMeiluawati were not picked.<\/p>\n
The 1992 gold medalist Alan Budikusuma, Susi's fiance, Joko
\nSuprianto, Ardy B Wiranata and Hermawan Susanto were also out of
\nthe running in the public's eyes.<\/p>\n
Indonesia won one gold, one silver and two bronze medals at
\nthe last Games, all in badminton. The results were disappointing
\ncompared to the 1992 Games, where Indonesia took home two golds,
\ntwo silvers and one bronze.<\/p>\n
Chief editor of Raket and the weekly football tabloid Bola
\nSumohadi Marsis said that the association must show courage and
\nset a target.<\/p>\n
"So far, the association has been very hesitant about setting
\na target because it's afraid of criticism," he said.<\/p>\n
Sumohadi said that not having an exact target gives the
\nassociation excuses for its failure.<\/p>\n
Fritz, who is also an official of the National Sports Council,
\nurged the government to start prioritizing badminton, the only
\nhope in the Olympics, by establishing a national project and
\nproviding funds for it.<\/p>\n
"The government should subsidize at least one third of the
\nproject," he said.<\/p>\n
Fritz predicted that the association would need Rp 1.8 billion
\n(US$763,000) per year for athlete development. The government is
\nexpected to provide Rp 600 million, he said.<\/p>\n
"It's time for the association to focus its attention on
\ninternational successes. The government can help by popularizing
\nbadminton in schools and youth clubs," he said.<\/p>\n
He also said that the association must stage post-tournament
\nevaluations not only for players but also for officials.<\/p>\n
"Officials always say that the players were not ready, the
\nplayers were under pressure. It's always the players. When do
\nofficials start being criticized?" he said.<\/p>\n
"The best way to find out what the shuttlers think is to ask
\nthem to fill in questionnaires so they don't have to speak," he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Fritz also urged the association to start sending coaches
\nabroad for refresher courses.<\/p>\n
"They need to open their minds about many things. Maybe we can
\nsend them to the U.S. or Europe or China, just to see their
\ntraining programs and facilities," he said.<\/p>\n
The discussion, which involved around 80 people, also featured
\nthe International Badminton Federation representative Justian
\nSuhandinata and former shuttler Rudy Hartono. (yan)<\/p>",
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