Basketball parade to boost SEAG bid

Basketball parade to boost SEAG bid

JAKARTA (JP): A massive parade involving 7,000 people will cap the month-long celebration of the 44th National Basketball Day on Sunday morning.

Basketball enthusiasts will walk along a seven-kilometer main road from the National Monument to the ABC field at Senayan.

During the procession, participants will very briefly demonstrate their basketball skills at certain spots along the route.

Committee chairman Sutiyoso said yesterday that the parade was aimed at encouraging people to care more about basketball development in the country.

"But the more important goal is to mobilize public support for our teams for the 18th Southeast Asian Games in Chiang Mai," said Sutiyoso, who is also first chairman of the Indonesian Basketball Association.

All 20 national men's and women's players will be publicly introduced during the parade.

"We want the people to know them and be proud of them. But, consequently, the people have the right to ask the players to reach the heights in the SEA Games," Sutiyoso said.

Participants will include students from 20 elementary schools, 40 junior high schools, 40 senior high schools and 10 universities. Armed Forces members will also join the two-hour parade.

Sutiyoso said a wider and consistent campaign of basketball was needed if Indonesia wants to form a strong team. "We have a human resources advantage. It would be illogical if a country of 200 million people didn't have a strong basketball team," he said.

Indonesia has never won any basketball gold medals in the SEA Games since its affiliation into the sporting meet in 1977. It now expects to take the men's silver and the women's bronze in the Dec. 9 to Dec. 17 Games.

Chairman of the National Sports Council, Wismoyo Arismunandar, and the association's president, Harmoko, are expected to start off the parade. (amd)