24 teams will compete in student baseball c'ships

JAKARTA (JP): Following a successful Students' Baseball Tournament last year, organizers expected more students to take part this year at a similar event jointly organized by Garuda Baseball club, Prambors Baseball and Softball club, and FeMale radio station.

The event is slated to start on July 22 and continue every Sunday thereafter until Sept. 9, at the Bung Karno Baseball and Softball stadium in Central Jakarta.

"While last year we used the slogan 'Sports against drugs', this year we have adopted 'Hit the fears, catch the cheers'," organizing committee chairman Sudarman Djamaan told reporters at a media conference on Saturday.

"We want to encourage more students to have fun with sport first, especially those at elementary schools. They can think of achievements once they enter high school.

"The most important thing is that baseball not only allows the children to develop their individual skills, but more importantly how to work together as a team," he added.

He said that 300 students had registered themselves for the event, which would be sufficient for some 20 teams. The organizer is expecting a total of 24 teams to participate.

"Individuals, as well as teams, can apply for the event. We will establish a mixed team for individuals. With a registration fee of Rp 150,000 (US$13), participants will get a uniform and a certificate," said Sudarman.

"We also welcome school teams, as well as those from baseball clubs. The registration fee is Rp 500,000 per team, but they provide their own uniforms," he added.

There are four divisions in the event, T-ball League for elementary school's first and second graders, Machine Pitch League for third and fourth graders, and Little League for fifth and sixth graders. These divisions are open to boys and girls.

The fourth league, the Senior League is only for boy students at the junior high school level.

Teams at the T-ball League and Pitching Machine League will not have pitchers. The ball is put on a pole in the T-ball League, while a pitching machine is used in the Pitching Machine League.

"It is important to start at an early stage to achieve the best results, especially if the students have an ambition to be national players," said Sudarman.

"Most of the players in our current national team started to play baseball from an early age. Starting to play the sport later may not produce the best benefit," he added. (nvn)