'Indonesia's Olympic target exaggerated'
ATLANTA, Georgia (Agencies): National Sports Council chief Wismoyo Arismunandar said here on Monday that some of the council's hope resting on its Olympic team proved to be illusive.
Wismoyo specifically pointed out the 5-15, 12-15 defeat of World Cup winner and World Grand Prix titleholder Joko Suprianto to Commonwealth champion Rashid Sidek of Malaysia in their men's singles Olympic badminton quarter-final match on Sunday.
"No one would have anticipated the defeat... but we should not be dismayed. Let us keep hoping for better outcomes in the remaining matches," Wismoyo was quoted by Antara as saying here on Monday.
He was briefing Indonesian reporters in a press conference at the Association of Indonesian Students in the United States' pavilion in Atlanta. Indonesia's ambassador for the U.S., Arifin Siregar, joined the gathering.
Indonesia brought a 40-strong team heavy on badminton players here in a bid to retain its two gold medals it won in Barcelona two years ago.
Indonesia decided to take part in 11 sports in the Centennial Olympics, although there had been a suggestion from President Soeharto early this year that only potential medal winners deserved places in the team.
Some of the shocks suffered by Indonesia on Sunday and Monday were perhaps not as bitter as Joko's collapse but by no means less discouraging.
Indonesia's Barcelona Olympic champion Alan Budikusuma failed to join his fiance, second seed Susi Susanti, into the last four after going down 5-15, 9-15 to All-England champion Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen of Denmark.
Indonesia's hopes in the women's doubles also went up in smoke after Eliza and Zelin Resiana dropped out 7-15, 3-15 to world number one pair of Ge Fei and Gu Jun of China.
Two Indonesian mixed doubles teams were ousted as well. Trikus Heryanto and Minarti Timur lost 4-15, 7-15 to Kim Dong-moon and Gil Young-ah of South Korea while Flandy Limpele and Riseu Rosalina fell 2-15, 15-5, 7-15 to Liu Jianjun and Sun Man of China.
Wismoyo also referred to the failure of Indonesian top female table tennis player Rossy Pratiwi Dipoyanti and her male counterpart Anton Suseno to survive their respective group matches as "unexpected."
Winless Rossy was bottom-placed in Group F and Anton, who won only against Gideon Ng of Canada, was third-placed in Group O. Both failed to qualify for the second round.
Another big upset came in archery. Indonesia's top female archers Hamdiah, Dahliana and Nurfitriyana Lantang all crashed out early. Hamdiah fell 151-156 to Severine Bonal of France, Dahliana was beaten 153-157 by Giovanna Aldegani of Italy and Nurfitriyana succumbed 144-141 to Barbara Mensing of Germany.
Other dismal, unthinkable results were the early exits of Indonesian freestyle swimmer Richard Sam Bera, middleweight judoist Kresna Bayu, featherweight boxer Nemo Bahari, the first- round exit of tennis queen Yayuk Basuki and the second-round ejection of Yayuk and her long-time partner Romana Tedjakusuma.
Thus, until Monday, Indonesia's Olympic medal hopes stayed alive in boxing, badminton, women's team archery and wind- surfing.
Lightflyweight La Paene Masara became only the third Indonesian boxer to advance into the Olympic quarterfinals. In badminton, Susi Susanti and Mia Audina reached the women's singles semifinals. Hariyanto Arbi is in the men's singles semifinals and Ricky Subagja and Rexy Mainaky in the men's doubles final.
Hamdiah, Dahliana and Nurfitriyana have qualified for the archery's team event, and I Made Oka Sulaksana stays in contention for one of the wind-surfing medals. (arf)