Boat racing dominated by Indonesia with 5 golds

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (JP): Indonesian paddlers won on Thursday one gold and one silver medal to conclude the traditional boat races at the Southeast Asian Games.

Victory in the men's 22-crew 800 meters race held at the Serasa Water Sports Complex course, about 50 kilometers northwest of here, brought Indonesia's gold medal tally to five out of a possible eight.

Myanmar won the women's section of the race to finish the three-day competition with three golds, all of which came in the women's events. Indonesian female paddlers beat on Wednesday their Myanmar rivals in the 12-crew 800m race for the gold.

It was a neck-to-neck rematch on Thursday, with Myanmar completing the 22-crew 800m course in three minutes and 14.37 seconds, 0.56 seconds faster than Indonesia. The host team finished a distant third in 3:45.95.

In the men's section, Indonesia maintained its winning streak with a time of 2:48.49 to beat its toughest rival Myanmar by almost six seconds. Thailand was third in 3:01.43.

The national men's team members celebrated their clean sweep by throwing team manager Asmat Rifai into the water.

One of the Indonesian paddlers, Dian Kurniawan, said afterward his team could have lost had they failed to overcome their nervy start.

"We were tense in the beginning, but we gradually regained our self-confidence. Our rigorous training bore fruit," he said.

A disappointed woman paddler Marjunah said: "We could have won today if we had managed to step up the pace in the last meters."

Indonesian Rowing Association (PODSI) secretary-general Budiman Setiawan said his team's outcome surpassed the target of four golds. But he was still disappointed, saying Indonesia could have won one more gold in the women's event.

"We had only two-and-a-half months to train our women's squad. That's why their physical fitness is below standard. If only we could have had six months, I believe there would be a different story." (yan)