Medalist Destesa dreams of turning pro

Destesa Moniaga, who won a gold medal for Jakarta in his National Games (PON) debut, is now looking ahead at next year's Southeast Asian (SEA) Games before turning pro.

"I want to play in the SEA Games next year," the 19-year-old flyweight boxer said on Sunday in an interview with The Jakarta Post.

The 2005 SEA Games, a biennial regional sporting showcase, will be hosted by the Philippines.

Esa, Destesa's nickname, became the youngest boxer ever to win a gold at the National Games after defeating Karel Muskanan of East Nusa Tenggara on Friday.

"He was a tough guy out there. But I managed to hold him off during the bout," he said about the final.

Esa, the third of four siblings, has good genes to thank from his father, Ferry E. Moniaga, a former national champion.

His brother, Arenaldo Moniaga, also won a gold for the team after edging Anthonius Johny of South Kalimantan in the final of the 54-kilogram weight class.

Given his age, Esa is still inexperienced in international tournaments, debuting in the junior international at the 2001 World Cadet Boxing Championship in Azerbaijan.

He was one of Indonesia's candidates for the Athens Olympics, but lost in the June qualifiers in the Philippines.

"The failure did not make me lose heart. I will train harder and look for another chance. And one day, I will turn pro to help put Indonesian boxing on the world map," he said.