Badminton competition falls short

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The inaugural school badminton competition is set to begin in Bandung, West Java, in December, but the next stage of the competition, which would ensure a more consistent national development program, has yet to be worked out.

The competition will be staged at the elementary school (SD) and junior high school (SMP) levels as part of a campaign to introduce youths to badminton as early as possible, according to organizers.

"This is part of the government's program to further popularize badminton throughout the country," organizing committee member Minarni Sudaryanto said here on Monday.

However, the prospect for consistent development is not guaranteed because of the absence of a next stage for the competition.

Given the structure of the national education system, taking the competition to the next level would mean bringing it to high schools (SMUs).

"(A competition at the high school level) is not in our plans as yet. Maybe that will be next. We are looking elsewhere at the moment. Winners can join a junior championship or be given scholarships to continue training at the Ragunan School," Minarni said.

The 2003 junior championship is scheduled to take place in Yogyakarta in July. Ragunan is a reference to the Jakarta sports academy.

Minarni said the school competition would start in Bandung, with eight schools selected from about 32 taking part in the competition.

"The competition is a follow-up to an agreement made between the Ministry of National Education and the Badminton Association of Indonesia (PBSI), which in May agreed on the need to find and train young shuttle players at an early age," Minarni said.

The competition in Bandung is scheduled for Dec. 11 to Dec. 13.

West Java is one of eight provinces involved in this school badminton competition pilot project. The other seven provinces, which will host competitions in January or February, are East Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta, Banten, Jakarta, North Sumatra and South Sulawesi.

The competitions will be held every Saturday and Sunday, with two singles and a doubles match, in both the boys and girls' categories.

With about 6,000 students expected to get involved, the competition should help the PBSI locate numerous possible candidates for the national badminton training center.