KONI expels 33 athletes from Indonesian squad
JAKARTA (JP): The National Sports Council (KONI) has decided to expel 33 athletes from its original 448 for the 20th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Brunei Darussalam next month due to poor performances during training period.
KONI official in charge of athletes development, Mochammad Hindarto, told a media conference after a plenary meeting with sports organizations that 11 track and field athletes, four squash female players and 18 female hockey players were expelled after a hard discussion between KONI and each sports organization.
Hindarto said the discussion also drew a conclusion that the 415 athletes were estimated to be able to win between 65 and 70 gold medals.
"But sports organization officials were low profile on their targets and said they could win 58 golds at the most," he said.
Hindarto said 12 of the 20 sports -- track and field, badminton, billiards and snooker, boxing, cycling, karate-do, pencak silat, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, tennis and traditional boat racing -- were expected to yield golds in the event.
Eight other sports -- basketball, bowling, golf, hockey, shooting, soccer, sepak takraw and squash -- could yield bronze medals.
"The track and field association (PASI) has submitted 36 names but 25 meet our standards to compete in the event. PASI has approved the decision," Hindarto said on the expulsion.
Separately, hockey head coach, Djamilus Syarif, said after the meeting that the Indonesian Hockey Association (PHSI) would only send 18 men's players because 12 of the 18 women's players were performing poorly during training.
Due to bad form, two men's players, Muhaimin and Cucu Suryana, were replaced by Kundan Singh and Melki Kristian Mamaribu.
"KONI still allows us to send both women's and men's teams for an overseas stint in Selangor, Malaysia, this weekend. But only the men's team will compete in the biennial event," he said. Both teams are scheduled to compete in the Tun Abdul Razak Cup in Selangor from July 9 to July 15.
PHSI started its training program last month after an internal dispute with its Jakarta chapter. It also had a quarrel with the Gelora Senayan Executive Directors on the use of the artificial surface field in the Senayan complex.
Hindarto said PHSI has vowed to have domestic and regional tryouts in the remaining training period.
Squash head coach, Bambang Gatot Subroto, said he had to eliminate the women's squash team from the national contingent due to health problems of two of his four players.
Fenny Luisa Mokalu and Desy Kristanty have health problems especially after undergoing physical tests. However, Bambang declined to elaborate on them.
Juwita Mokalu and Dianne Putri Asih failed to perform in the event as a country must send as at least three players are needed to compete.
"In squash, physical stamina determines 70 percent of an athlete's performance besides technical skills, mental condition and tactics. The women's players have undergone the Balke test (physical condition test) but they did not show any significant improvement.
"If we push them too hard, they get sick," he said.
Speaking on the men's basketball team's poor form in the Southeast Asian Basketball Association (SEABA) Cup against host country, the Philippines, Hindarto said he would not expel anymore athletes from the contingent but would evaluate their performance instead. (ivy/yan)