KONI told to hire foreign coaches for SEA Games

JAKARTA (JP): Some sports organizations, whose athletes are being groomed for the 2001 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Kuala Lumpur, are still dependent on the National Sports Council (KONI) for financial assistance to hire foreign coaches, despite the council's funds shortage.

Secretary General of the Indonesian Boxing Association (Pertina), Didiet Soedijoto, said on Friday that he was sure KONI could overcome the financial problems and continue the training programs, including hiring foreign coaches for certain sports.

"Based on previous experiences, I'm optimistic that KONI can overcome the financial shortage and help us support the foreign coaches," he said.

Pertina has appointed Cuban Carlos J. Penate Torres as head coach of the SEA Games training program. Torres receives a monthly salary of US$2,500.

"Pertina has to pay the whole salary for Torres while there's no multi-sport events. But KONI will take over the payment starting January as part of its responsibility in the centralized (training) program. The council has set an index of $3,000 for foreign coaches."

Didiet said that, as of December, Pertina has disbursed Rp 110 million (US$11,600) to finance decentralized training in athletes' respective hometowns, while KONI only contributed Rp 31 million.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian Archery Association (Perpani) is still negotiating with South Korean coach Lee Jae-hyung, who trained female archer Hamdiah for the 2000 Olympic Games. Secretary General Udi Harsono refused to disclose the potential cost, but confirmed that Perpani has sponsorship contracts which assist them to hire foreign coaches.

Unlike Pertina and Perpani, the Indonesian Taekwondo Association (TI) prefers to hire local coaches for SEA Games training. For the last decade, South Korean Oh Il-nam has been head coach of the Indonesian squad for international events.

TI Secretary General Adrian Lumowa said the association would hire Oh as a technical consultant. He will be required to transfer his knowledge to local coaches.

"We try to reduce KONI's burden, however, Oh can coach our elite SEA Games taekwondoins if necessary. In that case, we'll ask KONI to assume the responsibility," he said.

Adrian said Oh received a monthly salary of $3,000 to coach Juana Wangsa Putri and Rahadewi Neta for the Sydney Olympics, however, TI would propose a lower fee for SEA Games training.

"Oh is fully sponsored by KOICA, the Korea-Indonesia Corporation Agency. But in multi-sport events, when KONI is in charge, he will receive monthly payments from KONI," he said.

Raymond Kotambunan, in charge of athlete development at the Indonesian Yachting and Windsurfing Association (Porlasi), said that the body hopes it can completely rely on KONI for funds to hire a foreign coach.

"We really need KONI's support. We plan to hire a foreign coach, either Australian or Swedish, in February. The Australian asks for more than the Swede, who requests $2,000 per month, but his air ticket is more expensive than the Australian's," he said.

Raymond also said that Porlasi spent $3,000 to hire Bruce Kendall, from New Zealand, to coach male windsurfer Oka Sulaksana for the Sydney Olympics.

"But for SEA Games-level, we will ask to pay less than $3,000 to the prospective coach," he said. (ivy)