China, Australia prevail in archery warm-up meet

JAKARTA (JP): Foreign archers were not the winners but they taught the Indonesians a dear lesson as they warmed up for the 38th World Championships yesterday.

Both China and Australia shared the limelight, eclipsing the Indonesian archers, who were trying to find their form before the Aug. 1-Aug. 6 world championships here.

The national squad is undergoing its final proving ground in the June 13-June 18 national championships. China and Australia entered the week-long tournament to get used to the venue for the world championships and not as competitors.

China lived up to its billing as one of the world's strongest archery contenders when its athletes finished first in all but one event.

He Ying produced a superb comeback to clinch the top spot in the women's individual event with a total score of 1,324, thanks to her perfect shots in the 50m and 30m. She edged her fellow triumphant Asian Games team members, Wang Xiaozhu and Lin Sang, who scored 1,317 and 1,305 respectively.

Dahliana, Rusena Gelanteh and Hamdiah, who will form the backbone for the national team in August, salvaged Indonesia's pride as they finished fourth, fifth and seventh, despite their sub-par performances.

They failed to better the marks they set during the training session, with Dahliana managing only 1,266, Rusena 1,260 and Hamdiah 1,255. They scored an average of 1,300 during the training stint for the world championships last month.

The Chinese women's trio amassed a total of 3,946 to finish 267 points better than overnight runner-up Australia. Lampung, spearheaded by Purnama Pandiangan, combined a score of 3,551 for the third place. The result secured Lampung the gold medal in the national championships.

China, however, failed to stop Australian Jackson Fear from taking the men's individual laurels. Fearless Fear, who set the pace in Wednesday's competitions, garnered 1,298 points, just five points away from runner-up Li Xian Wu of China. Another Chinese Fu Sheng Yun played third with 1,289.

National ace Hendra Setijawan, who sprang a surprise win with his best mark in the 50m on Wednesday, led a pack of Indonesian stragglers with 1,274.

Hendra also spurred East Java to dominate the team event of the national championships. It garnered a total score of 3,719 to beat close rival Jakarta for the gold.

Yesterday's action in the national meet received the most cheers from the crowd when Lilies Handayani of East Java, who is expecting a baby in August, displayed her mastery by beating surprise finalist Hartati of Jambi in the women's individual event.

Lilies, a member of the national team which won the 1988 Olympic silver, outclassed a nervous Hartati 103-69 in the final. Lilies also shattered the national record by seven points in the semifinal when she scored 110. (amd)