Fear of SARS prompts tryout cancellations

Fear of SARS prompts tryout cancellations

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Indonesian Amateur Athletics Association (PASI) has canceled
its plan to give its athletes outings in neighboring countries
due to the threat of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), an
official said on Friday.

Tigor Tanjung, who is the secretary-general of PASI, said they
had abandoned the tryout plan, which would involved trips to the
Vietnam Open, Philippines Open, Thailand Open and Asian Cross
Country Championships in India.

All the events were scheduled for May.

"Except for India, we still hope that they will postpone the
events until later. The rescheduling will have to take account of
the development of SARS. India has scrapped its event," Tigor
said during the announcement of the Riau 10K here.

Tigor said they might be in for a two-month vacuum of tryouts
during May and June, and that this would affect the preparation
of athletes for the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Vietnam this
December.

"We have yet to think of an option for making up for the loss
of time. We are just telling the athlete to train hard to try to
keep up their competitive edge," he said.

Meanwhile, the maiden Riau 10K, which will be staged in Riau,
in the eastern part of Sumatra Island, was announced with Tigor
saying that the Rp 250 million (US$27,777) marathon competition
could serve as a domestic tryout for the country's athletes.

PASI has drawn up a list comprising 10 men's and 10 women's
runners for the competition. The contenders, according to Tigor,
are the top-ranked athletes for the past three months.