24 sports for Hanoi 2003 SEAG named
Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Organizing Committee for the Vietnam 2003 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games has confirmed an initial 24 sports for the upcoming sporting event between the Southeast Asian nations in Vietnam, an official of the National Sports Council (KONI) said on Tuesday.
"The Vietnam OC is certain to play the 24 sports. But it's possible others will be added to the list before it is officially announced next October," Indra Kartasasmita, in charge of foreign affairs, told reporters at KONI's headquarters.
The 24 comprise: athletics, basketball, chess, fin-swimming, soccer, gymnastics, handball, karatedo, sepak takraw, shuttlecock, table tennis, tae kwon do, tennis, volleyball, wushu, aquatics (including swimming), badminton, canoeing, cycling, bodybuilding, shooting, wrestling, pencak silat and judo.
The list was sealed in a council meeting of the SEA Games Federation in Hanoi at the weekend, at which the Indonesian delegation was led by KONI secretary-general Rudolf Warouw.
As far as Indonesia's medal hunt is concerned, the last nine sports in the list appear to be in accord with its aspirations.
The Indonesian delegation had, before its departure to Hanoi, expected as many as 14 sports it said should give it better medal prospects at the 2003 SEA Games, based on past experience.
Five were omitted -- archery, fencing, rowing, weightlifting and traditional boat racing.
However, M. Hindarto, who was in the dispatched team, said that they were satisfied with the OC's decision.
"As I told you before, we will be pressing ahead with the sports that in the past consistently produced more than 20 percent of the golds on offer," Hindarto said.
Yet, Indonesia may still be hopeful for further inclusions especially for archery, fencing, rowing and weightlifting. The four are in the seven sports the Vietnamese OC has not included in the competition list but are still possibles, pending requests from other nations.
The other three falling into this category are boxing, snooker and petanque.
Boxing looks set to be eliminated because the sport has been banned in Vietnam for seven years. No explanation was given. And it will need government interference for its return.
Indonesia, as Hindarto said, should benefit from boxing's exclusion as the sport has become a "gold mine" for rival Thailand.
Meanwhile, despite the fact that there was an insistent campaign for the traditional boat race -- a prolific field for Indonesia -- the hopes pinned on it look unlikely to materialize.
The traditional boat race is one of the 17 sports the OC is unlikely to hold, given the fact that there are no organizations for those sports in the country. To mention but a few, they are golf, baseball, equestrian, hockey, squash and ten-pin bowling.
The date of the 2003 SEA Games, which will be the first that Vietnam has hosted, has yet to be fixed. It is likely to be Dec. 10 through Dec. 19, according to Indra.
The provisional 24 sports will mean that a tentative 416 gold medals are up for grabs.
The executive committee of the SEA Games Federation will hold another meeting in October to finalize the number of sports and events.