Lody, Dewi expected to get gold once again
Lody, Dewi expected to get gold once again
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
As was the case two years ago in Vietnam, aerobics gymnast
Lody and artistic gymnast Dewi Prahara are considered most likely
to win gold in the upcoming 23rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
Indonesian Gymnastics Association (Persani) secretary-general
Asep Sulaeman said recently the pair -- the country's only top
podium finishers in gymnastics at the 22nd Games -- were expected
to repeat in the Philippines.
"Lody is training hard to compete in the SEA Games this year,
while Dewi is now training in Rumania to improve her chance to
win gold."
He also hoped 2003 SEA Games silver medalists Fahmi (aerobic)
and Muhammad Adila Akbar (artistic) would be able to improve from
their silvers of two years ago to land gold this time around in
the Philippines.
Asep acknowledged that the country's chances in the sport were
limited, because several neighboring countries had established
strong gymnastics development programs.
"Thailand, Vietnam and probably the host will dominate the 24-
division gymnastics competition in the SEA Games ..."
He included the host country among the top contenders because
Vietnam triumphed in the sport two years ago even though it was
not considered favorite.
Apart from the two golds and silvers, Indonesia took four
bronze in 2003.
With gymnastics offering a considerable number of medals,
Persani and the National Sports Council (KONI) realized the need
for better development of gymnasts.
Dewi was among a group of seven artistic gymnasts sent to
train in Rumania three months ago. Three others are training in
Russia, with the rest based in Jakarta.
A total of 24 gymnasts are in training for the Games,
consisting of 11 men -- six in artistic and five in aerobic --
and 13 women -- six in artistic, four in rhythmic and three in
aerobic.
Asep said the gymnasts appeared to be doing well in Rumania,
although there were no recent events to compare their form to
their peers in the region.
Unfortunately, the athletes experienced late delivery of their
allowances during training.
"The athletes training in Rumania are very young and for some
of them it's their first overseas experiences. If the allowances
are late, they are very miserable because it seems there is no
concern from KONI," he said.