2002 Megawati Cup to break new ground
Musthofid The Jakarta Post Jakarta
The use of President Megawati's for a women's basketball tournament does not appear to guarantee immediate success, according to an official of the Indonesian Basketball Association (Perbasi).
Setya Darma Majid, who is in charge of tournament organization, said that the Megawati Soekarnoputri Cup had failed to attract sponsors during the first two editions of the annual tournament.
"It is not an easy task to get them. The times have changed. Companies do not seem to automatically accede to offers for sponsorship just because the tournament uses the name 'Megawati'.
"We should not have taken it for granted that the name would guarantee success," Setya told a press conference during the announcement of the third Megawati Cup.
The six-day competition will start on Thursday and feature eight teams divided into two pools.
Unlike the previous years in which Perbasi had to organize it itself, this year's tournament will involve cooperation between the basketball association and sports event organizer SE Concept.
Hassani Abdulgani, from SE, said the organizer had arranged a sports tournament combined with entertainment show in an attempt to lure as many spectators as possible.
"We will present the spectators with Slank during the semifinal matches," he said referring to a popular local rock group.
An exhibition game between TV soap opera, locally known as sinetron, stars, entertainers and TV presenters was also planned, said Hassani, an American-based basketball commentator, who also mentioned a lineup of sponsors for the tournament.
Speaking further about basketball development, Hassani pointed to the importance of high frequency tournaments to ensure that women's basketball players in the country were well-tested and well-prepared for international events.
The Megawati Cup will be staged at the Kuningan Basketball Hall with a total of Rp 22.5 million (US$2,400) in cash prizes up for grabs.
Defending champion Mahaputri Hanamasa Jakarta leads Pool A, which also includes Bhinneka Solo, Samudra Yogyakarta and Sahabat Surabaya.
Wismilak CLS Surabaya, last year's runner-up, is grouped in Pool B with Rajawali Bandung, Merah Putih Bank Mandiri and Jayabaya Kediri.