Indonesia to name team for bridge meet

JAKARTA (JP): Five best pairs from the National Bridge Invitational tournament due to start today will represent Indonesia for the Far East Bridge Federation Championship (FEBFC) next year.

The tournament, to be staged at the Sahid Jaya Hotel at Lippo City, Cikarang, Bekasi, which will last until Nov. 22, is the arena to select national players for the FEBFC in Perth, West Australia on May 27.

The Indonesian Contract Bridge Association (Gabsi) has already named the country's top pair as Hengky Lasut and Eddy Manoppo who will head the national team.

Hengky and Eddy won the Open Pair title of the 16th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Interclub Bridge Championships in Genting Highland, Malaysia, last month.

Gabsi secretary Frans Waleleng, told The Jakarta Post yesterday that after the meet, which will last until Nov. 22, Hengky/Eddy and the best five pairs from the meet will undergo a two-week intensive stint under the tutelage of world-class Canadian coach Erick Kokish next month.

Gabsi has hired Kokish for US$80,000 to improve the skills of the national team, which performed commendably during the U.S. Cup Open Foursome in Albuquerque last month, when Indonesia finished second behind the U.S.

Prior to the national selection participants are required to undergo a special evaluation, including IQ test and partnership test, which started being carried out on Monday, Frans said.

The selected pairs invited to the meet are required to play a total of 700 boards. They consist of two pairs from Jakarta, three pairs from North Sumatra and the other three from East Kalimantan, which include Denny Sakul/Franky Karwur, who, together with Hengky and Eddy, ousted the Dutch team in the Bridge Olympics in Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.A. in September.

Given the performance record of the pairs, Frans expressed his guarded optimism that Indonesia, powered by Hengky/Eddy and the best five filtered from the meet, should win the Far East zone championship.

Only two countries, the winner and runner-up of the Far East zone championship, will qualify for the Bermuda Bowl World Bridge Open Pair Championship in Beijing, China, in October next year, where they will compete with the other 15 countries from the other world zones. (arf)