Indonesia is no longer SE Asia's sports power
BANGKOK (JP): Although six gold medals from the Asian Games here are already in hand as expected, Indonesia finds no reason to celebrate after seeing Thailand emerge as a new Asian sporting powerhouse.
While refusing to play down his team's achievements, Indonesia's chef de mission Mochammad Hindarto said on Friday night that national athletes should learn from their Thai hosts who had performed outstandingly during the Games.
"We have to admit that Thailand is now a step ahead of us in sports. They had prepared their athletes extraordinarily for the Asiad. We need to develop our athletes better than we did in the past to keep up with them," Hindarto said during a dinner at the Indonesian Embassy.
Badminton, Indonesia's lifeline to sports for decades, contributed two golds, while wind surfing, track and field, karate and tennis earned the country one gold apiece. Indonesia has also won 10 silvers and 10 bronzes as of Friday, compared to Thailand's 20 golds, 24 silvers and 36 bronzes.
In the 12th Asiad in Hiroshima, Japan, Indonesia managed only three golds, 12 silvers and 11 bronzes. Thailand won only one gold, 11 silvers and 13 bronzes in those Games.
Hindarto, who is also the National Sports Council (KONI) chief of athletes development, predicted that Thailand would dominate the Southeast Asian Games (SEA) next year in Brunei. The Thais have beaten Indonesia twice in the medal race at the SEA Games.
"We won't be able to match Thailand if they come to the next SEA Games at full strength. Thailand are good in three Olympic events: track and field, shooting and swimming." he said.
These three events usually account for about a third of the gold medals at stake in an international sporting event.
He warned that Malaysia could also pose serious threats to Indonesia in future sporting events, due to the fact that it has so far won five gold medals here.
Chances
Hindarto said that Indonesian athletes could have won more medals in the Asiad here if they had not wasted their chances. He also blamed Indonesia's mediocre performance on some sports organizations which had failed to carry out their training programs in line with KONI's guidelines.
However, he refused to identify the athletes or sports organizations in question.
Hindarto gave credit to the athletes who, despite their injuries or illnesses, carried on their fight for top honors. He particularly praised women's tennis singles champion Yayuk Basuki and men's badminton singles runner-up Hendrawan.
Hendrawan battled a fever in his semifinal and final matches. He lost in the finals to eventual gold medalist Dong Jiong of China in three sets.
Yayuk, meanwhile, played all of her matches in team and individual events with blistered feet.
Hindarto said that Indonesia could no longer rely on Asian Games veterans if it was to excel in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
"KONI had planned to give young athletes a shot in the next SEA Games. The event will serve as a stepping-stone for them to shine in the Olympics," he said.
The backbone of the national team for the 1999 SEA Games will be selected from students at the KONI-run physical education schools across the country. (yan)