Indonesian students set to retain title in S'pore

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia is out to retain the overall title at the ASEAN Students Games and will send 160 athletes to take part in all the 10 events of the competition scheduled for June 19-25 in Singapore.

The athletes are from softball (30), track and field (25), basketball (24), football (18), pencak silat (15), swimming (13), sepak takraw (12), lawn tennis (10), chess (seven), and squash (six), the Antara news agency reported yesterday.

Ecky Tamtelahitu, leader of the Indonesian contingent, said that not all gold medal winners at the last Games in 1992 in Medan, North Sumatra, were picked to don the national colors in Singapore.

"Our athletes who won gold medals in Medan did not automatically gain places in the Singapore-bound group," Ecky said. "Some who did not take part in Medan but have shown remarkable performances prior to the Games were included on the team."

He added that "only the best were selected, because they will represent the nation."

Citing an example, he said Eduardus Nabunome, the country's top middle-distance and long-distance runner, did not participate in the last Games. "But there was no doubt that he is Indonesia's current best bet in middle distance races, having won the SEA Games 10,000 meters races three times in a row."

The Southeast Asian Games is a biennial event that brings together the cream of the athletic crop from the region.

Ecky said the forthcoming ASEAN Students Games would serve as a valuable tune-up for Eduardus, who also won the 1992 Asian Marathon in Bandung, West Java, before his participation in the 12th Asian Games in Hiroshima, Japan, next October. (bas)