Dodgy instructions lead to defeat of RI boxers

Dodgy instructions lead to defeat of RI boxers

JAKARTA (JP): An instruction to seek victory through a knock-
out (KO) or referee-stop-contest (RSC) ruling was to blame for
the failure of two top Indonesian boxers in their Southeast Asian
Games bouts on Monday in Chiang Mai, Thailand, according to a
senior official.

Secretary-general of the Indonesian Amateur Boxing Association
(Pertina), Didiet Soedijoto, told The Jakarta Post yesterday that
the strategy, which entails "attack, attack and attack", created
more opportunities for the opponents to land counter jabs.

Didiet was referring to Pertina's executive director Imron
Z.S. and coach Daniel Bahari, who insisted that it was a must for
Indonesian boxers to gain a KO or RSC win, arguing that Thailand
would employ any means to beat Indonesian boxers if they merely
excelled on points.

Indonesia's two-time President Cup best boxer featherweight
Nemo Bahari, who received the same instructions from his father
and coach Daniel Bahari, made an unexpectedly early exit from the
Games.

He bowed out 6-18 to his arch rival, Thailand's Somluck
Kamsing, in their qualifying match on Monday. The loss extended
Nemo's losing streak against Kamsing to 3-1.

A KO or RSC victory is prized in professional boxing, but such
wins are not favored by the world boxing body AIBA, Didiet said.
He cited AIBA's preamble, which states that "winning on points
for better technical performance takes priority over victories
earned by having to prematurely stop the bout".

Moreover, "trying to force a KO win was not realistic in this
case because Nemo and Kamsing stand at more or less the same
level," Didiet said.

Imron, however, disagreed with Didiet. "Nemo's loss is due to
our bad luck during the draw. We predicted that Nemo would take
on Kamsing in the final round, not in the qualifier. This has
nothing to do with the instruction," Imron told the Post by phone
from Chiang Mai.

"It was the worst performance by Nemo that I have ever seen.
He lost his form and himself, as if he knew nothing about boxing.
His movements were so awkward. He looked to be in great
difficulty in launching attacks," Imron said.

"It was a loss, no more no less. I don't want to make any
excuses," he said, adding that he was still baffled by Nemo's
poor showing.

Following Nemo's loss on Monday was his flyweight teammate
Rachman Kili-kili. The silver medalist of last March's King's Cup
in Bangkok also fell on points to his opponent, Elias Recaido of
the Philippines.

Yesterday Indonesia suffered two further blows in boxing.
Heavyweight Rudolf Haurissa fell RSC in the fourth round to
Thailand's Narong Kahan while his teammate, lightwelterweight
Regues Feros CH Gommies, lost on points to another Thai,
Chaichoompol Chaamnanmarg.

But their losses were "within our projections", Imron said.
"We did not expect the two get beyond the semifinals," he added.

In spite of these setbacks, Imron said the outlook is not that
bad. Three Indonesian boxers have won tickets to the finals:
middleweight Pino Jeffta Udayana Bahari, light middleweight
Albeth Papilaya and welterweight Aswin Roberth Cabui.

Today light middleweight Hendrik Simanungsong, featherweight
Victor Ramos and bantamweight Rico Maspaitella will fight for
final berths.

"I believe that all of them, or at least two of them, will go
to finals," Imron said. "Our target is just two gold medals, but
I am optimistic we can get more," he added. Indonesia sent 11
boxers to Chiang Mai. (arf)