Asiad runners enter Indonesia Open
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Open track and field championships due to start today will be the country's proving ground for its national relay team prior to their departure for the Asian Games in Hiroshima next month.
The Asiad-bound relay team groups Antonius Sulistiono, Ernawan Witarsa, Khodik Juntasi and national 100m record holder Mardi Lestari.
"We are searching for the best order of the team while improving their exchange of the baton," coach Julius Toisuta told The Jakarta Post yesterday.
Julius expressed his relief that his boys had ridden on a growth curve. Mardi and company shattered their own national record of 39.93 seconds by nine hundredth of a second during the Singapore Open track and field meet last weekend.
They finished second behind the Thailand team, the same rivals who beat them in last year's Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
"We are not poised to go on our record breaking run. Winning the race here is enough," said Mardi.
Mardi, who was beaten by Singaporean Muhammad Hosni by a hundredth of a second over 100m in Singapore, also said he is ready to compete in the Asian Games sprint.
"Mardi deserves the race, but the final word is up to the Indonesian track and field chief Mohammad (Bob) Hasan," Julius said.
The Medan-based Mardi, triple SEA Games champion, will not compete individually at the Indonesia Open held at Madya Senayan stadium, committee chairman Gurmilang Kartasasmita said yesterday.
Some 390 athletes from all of the country's provinces except South Sumatra will take part in the three-day track and field event which is scheduled to be officially opened by Minister of Social Services Endang Kusuma Inten Soeweno.
Australia, Sri Lanka and Singapore, which are also competing, came with 31, ten and seven athletes respectively.
Commenting on foreign participants, Gurmilang said that Singapore came with its best athletes, including Hosni who won the 100m men's title on home soil.
As for Australia's and Sri Lanka's teams, Gurmilang said, although they were not the best ones, their ranks were still higher than their Indonesian counterparts.
Top national athletes, including Eduardus Nabunome, Indonesia's best middle and long distance runner of East Nusa Tenggara and best women's walker Hasiati Lawole of Southeast Sulawesi, will represent their respective provinces during the competitions.
However, Gurmilang predicted that Australia would dominate the event while Indonesia might have to be satisfied with a marginal performance only.
The reason, according to Gurmilang, was that "apart from the 4 X 100m relay team, we do not field our top athletes because we are preparing them for the fifth Asian Athletic Junior championships scheduled to be held at the same stadium on Sept. 17." (arf/amd)