Athletes in Olympics training suffer injuries

Athletes in Olympics training suffer injuries

JAKARTA (JP): Seven athletes currently training for the 2000
Olympic Games in Sydney have to undergo medical treatment for
injuries or illnesses, the National Sports Council (KONI) said on
Thursday.

KONI spokesman Ahmed Solihin named the athletes as women's
badminton player Cindana Hartono; boxers Willem Papilaya and
Hermansen Ballo; men's judoka Kresna Bayu; women's taekwondoin
Juana Wangsa Putri; and women's weightlifters Winarni and Sri
Indriyani.

"KONI will send doctors to assist the teams which are treating
the athletes. We are not trying to interfere in their treatment.
We will coordinate with the regional sports councils where the
athletes are training, their sports organizations and the medical
teams supervising them," he said.

Cindana, currently ranked 13th in the world, was injured in
February during a simulation for the semifinal round of the Uber
Cup.

Willem and Hermansen reportedly are suffering from
malnutrition and Winarni is suffering from typhoid. Sri Indriyani
injured her knee when she attempted to lift a 110-kilogram
barbell, Bayu has epilepsy and Juana is recovering from a back
injury.

Juana's South Korean coach, Oh Il-nam, said separately Juana
would begin training on March 20. Juana, who competes in the
flyweight division, had to cancel an overseas stint in Europe due
to her injury, Oh added.

"Juana only managed to participate in the U.S. Open in
Honolulu, Hawaii, last month. She is expected to return to
training camp by the end of this month. She has undergone medical
treatment in South Korea," he said.

Juana is scheduled to compete in the Japan Open in Osaka from
April 29 to April 30, the Asian Tae kwon do Championship in Hong
Kong from May 18 to May 21, the Mexico Open from June 8 to June
11 and the Korea Open in South Korea from June 26 to June 29.

The Indonesian Taekwondo Association has been training
Rahadewi Neta to replace Juana if she is unable to recover in
time for the Olympics.

"Juana won't miss the opportunity. She will fight in the
Olympics. There's no better women's taekwondoin in Indonesia.
Neta is still too young, she lacks competitiveness because she
has only taken part in a few international tournaments," Oh said.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Swimming Association deputy secretary-
general Dadeng Kurnia said Indonesian swimmer Steven Chandra had
qualified for the Olympics in the 1,500m freestyle.

Dadeng said Steven clocked 16:11 seconds in the 1999 Southeast
Asian Games in Brunei Darussalam, beating the Olympic qualifying
time of 16:30 seconds. Steven is now training in Sydney, where he
also attends college.

"It was Michael Bell, Steven's coach in Sydney, who informed
us last week that Steven had qualified for the Olympics. We
hadn't noticed before this. You know, we're only human," he said.

Dadeng said Steven would miss the Asian Swimming Championships
in Pusan, South Korea, later this month, but would compete in
several tournaments in Sydney as a warm-up for the Olympics.
(ivy)